Still Waters
by Wyrtha
Summary: Orochimaru takes Naruto at a young age to experiment on him. Now he has to find his place in the world with a new friend bound together by a mad man. AU, NarutoxIsaribi, originally Gomjibar22's FoxFish.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 1 – Capture**

A three year old blond boy runs into an ally, followed closely by an angry mob of villagers.

Soon the boy runs into a dead end and hurriedly turns around only to come face to face with the feet and fists of the mob.

'Why me?' cried the boy in his mind.

He doesn't know what he did wrong to make the villagers hate him so much, all he did was walk around the town.

After an hour of beating the boy to a bloody pulp the mob dispersed, their anger finally spent, leaving the boy broken in a very large pool of his own blood.

However he was still conscious and he slowly began to crawl away.

Already most of the cuts have healed and the broken bones were starting to mend when suddenly he notices two men standing above him.

"Amazing regeneration powers… he could be useful in perfecting my technique without having to use up so many test subjects."

Turning to the other man he continues talking

"I could perfect the process on him and then try it out on the girl to test its effects on a normal human."

"Kukuku, I see your point. You may take the boy."

"Thank you Orochimaru-sama." with that the man bent down and grabbed Naruto and flung his now unconscious body over his shoulder.

Looking towards Orochimaru he asks, "Is there anything else you need here sir?"

"No, let's get out of this shit hole, kukuku"

The next year went by in a haze for Naruto

It took six months for the man to get his technique down on how to perform the experiment, through a painful method of trial and error.

Naruto would have died on the first experiment if it wasn't for the Kyūbi's regeneration abilities. Thanks to the fox, Naruto was able to heal after every mistake the man made

The last six months saw Naruto floating painfully in a tank of liquid with tubes connected to him as his body was slowly made to transform. It was some time during this stage that Naruto discovered that he was the container for the Kyūbi .

Surprisingly he took the news well, it helped that the constant pain numbed his mind somewhat and the Kyūbi was tired from healing Naruto almost non-stop.

Also sometime during the last six months Naruto vaguely noticed another person floating in a similar tank, hooked up to the same machines he was connected to, also being transformed.

The man, Amachi, stood in fount of the two tanks and was looking at the occupants when he heard footsteps approach behind him. Turning around he saw that it was Orochimaru and his student Anko.

Looking at Anko the man had to hold in his laughter. She has a look of shock, disgust, and fear spread across her face, even as she tried to hide these emotions behind a mask.

"How are the test subjects today?" asked Orochimaru

"They are ready to come out of the tanks today, sir. Subject #1 took longer than Subject #2 to complete the process because his healing abilities got in the way. But despite this setback, the change was successfully made."

(A.N: Subject #1 is Naruto and Subject #2 is Isaribi)

Looking back at the tanks the man smiled

"In fact, they are ready to come out now. Would you care to assist me, Sir?"

"Kukuku, I'd love to. Anko go stand in that corner and observe what happens. I want you to notice everything."

Turning to the tanks the two men removed both occupants and put them on waiting examination tables.

Turning to the man, Orochimaru said, "It would appear that they aren't able to fully change back to normal, and there were other, unintentional, changes.

Naruto's right arm, right leg, forearm of the left arm, forehead, part of the right side of his chest, his neck, the souls of his feet, and a line under his left eye were covered in dark green scales.

Isaribi also had these same spots covered with the scales except they were on the opposite side of her body from where Naruto had his (like the way she is in the anime).

Also Naruto's sun-kissed blond hair turned a dark green-black color and his hair was less spiky. Now he has only 6 spikes of hair (three to each side) and they are all angled down with two of them acting like sideburns.

Isaribi's hair had also changed from her original brown color to the same dark green-black color as Naruto.

Looking nervous and beginning to sweat, the man said, "I'm sorry Orochimaru-sama, I will have this problem fixed for the final version."

"Kukuku, see that you do" Orochimaru says before he and Anko leave.

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><p><strong>This is Still Waters my new fic, which was originally FoxFish by Gomjibar22. There will be a lot of changes, but I will try to keep true to what he started. I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter. <strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 2 – Changes**

Amachi was fuming as he deposited his two experiments in their holding cell and strapped them down to the table.

'How could I have known that they would be unable to hide all of their scales? They were the test subjects after all! No reason for Orochimaru-sama to get angry at me' He thought.

Scowling he looked down at the two children whom he turned into abominations and his face lightened up a bit, 'Well, at least the theory is sound' he concluded.

Turning to leave he was suddenly stopped by a hand on his wrist. Whirling around he can face to face with a sight that almost made him lose control of his bowls. Naruto was sitting up holding him, but instead of his normal blue eyes, Amachi was met with the crimson eyes of a demon.

"Kyūbi " Amachi whispered in fright.

"**Hello, good doctor**" spoke the Kyūbi in a deep sarcastic voice. "**I see you've had fun with my container's body. Hahaha! You know, when you play with toys that don't belong to you, it's polite to ask the owner first**" said the Kyūbi with a sadistic grin.

This comment left Amachi speechless, much to the Kyūbi delight.

"**But since I like what you've done I will keep it… No, wait, I won't keep it, I will make it even better!" **

With that red chakra began to bubble out of Naruto's body, completely covering him and Isaribi. Soon the smell of burning flesh and the sound of flesh boiling filled the room. After a few minutes the red chakra receded. Left in its place was a sight that amazed Amachi.

Naruto and Isaribi had completely changed, gone were the random dark scales that covered parts of their bodies. Now their skin was a very light green color and appeared to be made up of very fine (but strong) scales. Their feet were covered in a dark green color that went halfway up their shins before it moved only to the outer sides of the legs and continued up the side of their bodies. There are also dark green stripes running along the entire lengths of their arms that stop at their knuckles.

The two stripes met at the neck with the leg/body stripes disappearing into their armpits while the arm stripes continued up both sides of their necks and up to the front of the ears. There it splits with one part going under the adjacent eye while the other continues up the forehead and meets with the other side. This completely covers their foreheads and extends down to the bridge of their noses. Also their ears became pointed and a dark green stripe of color can be seen on the outside edges. Their teeth became pointed (like Suigetsu's) and webbing could be seen on their hands and feet. Also while their eye colors remained the same (brown for Isaribi and blue for Naruto) their pupils turned into slits and their hair remained the same dark shade of green, darker than the stripes on their bodies. There is also a dark green stripe on their spines extending from the top of their neck going all the way down their back.

The only other real difference were the whisker marks displaying Naruto's status as a jinchūriki, although they seemed to be a little thicker and more real.

When the transformation was done, the Kyūbi looked at Amachi, "Now**, their bodies are perfect. No more transforming and no more ugly appearances. Just power and these sleek bodies, Hahaha!**"

Suddenly the Kyūbi became deadly serious and gave Amachi a look that sent shivers down his spine, "**Change it in anyway and I will rip you apart, starting at your feet and working my way up … slowly.**"

With that Naruto fell back onto the bed unconscious. Amachi remained rooted in place for a couple of minutes before quickly leaving the room to go see Orochimaru.

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><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I hope you all enjoyed it. <strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 3 – Escape  
><strong>

Amachi quickly went to the room where he felt Orochimaru's chakra coming from. Upon coming to the open door, he saw his master's neck extended out and his jaws clamped upon the base of Anko's neck. He watched in fascination as Orochimaru's jaws relaxed dropping the girl then retracted his neck as Anko began to cry out in pain on the floor.

"I thought you liked her as a student?" Amachi asked when Orochimaru left the room.

"I did, but seeing her reaction to the experiment showed me that she doesn't have the strength to stomach what I do. If she survives the curse seal then she will be of some use, if not, she is replicable, kukuku. Now tell me, what brings you here in such a hurry? I would have thought you would be playing with your new pets a little while longer."

"Actually, sir, that is why I'm here" Amachi said with his brow beginning to sweat.

He then goes into detail about what happened with the Kyūbi, how it changed Naruto's and Isaribi's bodies and it's threat to him if further tampering took place. By the time he was done explaining what has happened Orochimaru had a look of anger and annoyance on his face.

"This can complicate things… I was hoping to conduct other experiments on the boy, but according to what you said the Kyūbi will interfere… violently. '_Sigh'_ Well, we can still train them and put them to use as aquatic tools" Orochimaru thinks out loud.

Looking up at Amachi he continued, "Kukuku, it seems the Kyūbi might have done you a favor. Study their DNA and see what it changed. This could help you perfect the process, kukuku."

And with that Orochimaru began to walk back to his private lab to continue working on his own sick experiments and Amachi went to his lab do what Orochimaru had suggested. All the while the screams of pain and anguish could be heard from Anko echoing throughout the base

**Time skip – a week later**

It took a week for the curse seal to fully settle in on Anko. One agonizing week where her every waking moment was spent in pain. Sometime during the ordeal Orochimaru came in to check on her. It was then that he told her that all his previous students had died because of the seal and that it looked like she would be added to that list.

However, this gave her the motivation she needed to survive the ordeal. Not to impress Orochimaru, but rather to resist him, to prove him wrong.

'I will survive this, I will not be weak' was the sole thought running through her mind continuously while her body was ravaged with pain caused by the seal.

On the eighth day the pain finally subsided and Anko slowly got up from the floor and started to limp/crawl towards the door of the room. Right as she got to the door it opened up to reveal Orochimaru standing there.

"Kukuku, congratulations Anko-chan, kukuku. You have surpassed my expectations for you. You have proven yourself worthy to me, kukuku" laughed Orochimaru.

Anko opened her mouth to try to tell the man, she until recently admired and loved, off. But all that came out of her parched lips was a pitiful sounding rasp. This attempt of defiance brought a twinkle to Orochimaru's eyes and he let out a sadistic laugh that filled the room and the adjoining hallway.

"Kukuku, that's it Anko-chan. Use you anger, hate me and in doing so I will control you!" Orochimaru exclaimed.

Anko knew what he said to be true. She could feel the curse seal calling to her, to use its power, but she knew that by using that power she would be striped of her free will and become a slave to the man she hated. She couldn't explain how she knew, but she just did. Forcefully she pushed the seal back into submission, but its voice was still there. This act of resistance sapped Anko of her remaining strength and she slumped to the floor, utterly exhausted.

"Kukuku, resist all you want, you can't escape it. Even if you leave here you will bear it as a stigma, with my voice always in the back of your mind. You will never be free, kukuku!" Orochimaru taunts his now unconscious student sure she could some how still here him. And with that Orochimaru walked away from Anko lying on the floor, not even bothering to lock her back into the room.

**Time skip – the next day**

Anko's eyes slowly opened. The first thing she noticed was that while her body still hurt, she felt much better than she had in a while.

'Maybe it was because I threw up" she smirked to herself, eying the pool of vomit right in front of face.

It had generally been the case before when she would go out drinking with friends taking advantage of her shinobi status and the small privileges it held, such as allowing minors to drink.

Slowly she stood, bracing her hands on the wall until her head cleared and she could feel her leg again. Taking a deep breath she began to formulate her plan on what she was going to do.

'First things first, I need weapons and solder pills. Then I need to get out of this god forsaken place here' Anko decided.

With her mind made up on what she was going to do, Anko stealthily made her way back to her room, making sure to avoid Orochimaru and Amachi. Once in her room she quickly popped two solder pills and took a long swig of some energy drink she kept in a canteen. She quickly grabbed her gear (kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, and other weapons/supplies) and placed a large stack of explosive notes on her bed, set to go off in half an hour.

'Here's my goodbye present, you snake bastard!' She thought animatedly with a chibi Anko cheering her on in her mind.

Anko began to make her escape when she remembered the fate of the kids she saw in the tanks. Stopping in her tracks she begins to mentally debate with herself.

'Should I go get them? No? Yes? Twenty minutes until the bomb goes off, not enough time to drag two kids out of this place… I could just release them… Yea, that's what I will do! They're part fish so they should be able to get off the island fine … I hope' she thought.

With her course decided she quickly made her way to the holding cell were the two were located. Inside the room she found them both naked in two separate fish tanks. Upon seeing her they began to let out a series of shrieks/whistles that sounded similar to whale calls or some other kind of sea mammal.

The kids minds were in shock as they tried to process what happened to them reverting back to their more base and now enhanced, thanks mostly to Kyūbi and slightly Amachi's experiments on them, animal instincts. Thus the strange sounds they were emitting in stead of normal human speech.

Quickly Anko smashed the tanks open, spilling the water and the children all over the floor. Naruto and Isaribi sat crouching on the floor looking at Anko with animalistic curiosity.

Smiling at the two of them Anko said, "Well, you're free, so ja ne!" and with that she took off with thirteen minuets till the bomb goes off Naruto and Isaribi following closely behind her.

Anko was able to make it to the opposite shores right as the bomb she planted went off, causing a good portion of the island that the base was located on to crumble and fall into the sea. Smiling she plopped down on the sands of the beach, her strength fading from her. Before she slipped into unconsciousness she noticed the forms of Isaribi and Naruto in the surf.

"Glade to see you two got out" Anko said smiling as she passed out.

And that is how the ANBU of Konoha found the three. Drawn by the explosion they found Anko lying on the beach, unconscious, and Naruto and Isaribi in the surf watching over her. The good thing was they couldn't recognize Naruto even with his whisker marks and just thought it was two weird kids with some kind of freaky new bloodline that they were seeing. Other wise they would have left him there and possibly killed him.

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><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I hope you all enjoyed it. <strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 4 – Safe ... for the moment  
><strong>

Anko began to regain consciousness. She could feel the soft bed and sheets surrounding her and judging by just how much she felt, she was naked under the sheets. She could feel a monitor on her wrist and hear the soft rhythmical beeping of a machine in the background, in tune with her heart.

'Ok, so I'm in a hospital.' Opening her eyes she immediately closed her eye's again, 'Yup, defiantly a hospital. Why the hell are lights always so bright in a hospital, and right above your face?' she thought inwardly complaining.

Opening her eyes slowly this time she blinked to clear the dots from her eyes. Taking in her surroundings she noted that she was by herself in a small white room with a window off to her left. Looking out the window she recognized where she was, she was back in Konoha.

Trying to sit up, she immediately cried out in pain as her body felt like it was on fire and it seamed to be coming from the curse seal. Sitting fully up and letting the sheets fall down to her waist she placed her right hand over the curse seal. This seamed to calm the pain as it faded away to a dull ach in a couple of minuets.

Taking a few deep breaths she regained her composure and absentmindedly brushed away a stray lock of hair that fell on her now sweaty forehead. Suddenly the door to the hospital room opened up and the Sandiame Hokage entered followed by an ANBU agent who was a little older than Anko wearing a tiger mask. Upon seeing Anko's current state of dress or undress as it were Sarutobi just smiled while the ANBU agent turned his head, a faint trail of blood coming from the nose holes in the mask.

Coughing slightly and lightly tugging on his shirt, Sarutobi said, "Feeling better Anko?"

"Fine, thank you" Anko said cautiously, trying to find the meaning behind the Hokage's strange behavior.

Then a slight breeze reminded her of her state of undress and turning red as a tomato she quickly covered her self up.

"M-My apologies, Hokage-sama" Anko stammered out embarrassed.

Laughing Sarutobi said, "It's ok, I'm a married man with a daughter, so it's nothing new. However, I was worried for poor tiger-san here" he said gesturing to the ANBU agent next to him.

Said ANBU agent quickly came to attention and even with his mask on, you could see the color draining from his face.

"Moving on," said Sarutobi, his voice becoming serious, "I need you to tell me what happened."

And that is how Anko spent the first couple of hours back in Konoha, telling the Hokage and his ANBU guard everything about her time with Orochimaru. Every little detail she told, even things she would normally keep her mouth shut about. This was because she was injected with truth serum before she woke up. When she was done with her tale the Hokage told her before leaving that the council will be deliberating to decide her fate, but that if all went well she would be allowed to be a Konoha nin after a probation period. After that was said, Sarutobi left but the tiger masked ANBU member stayed behind.

Hokage Tower – Hokage's office

Returning to his office, Sarutobi sighed, he was getting to old for this shit. He just went over what Anko said and it filled his heard with regret.

'How many lives will my mistake destroy? Now three more lives have been claimed' the Hokage lamented.

Sitting down at his desk he looked down at a medical folder that was slightly burnt. It was from Amachi and it contained the data about the transformation Naruto and Isaribi went through. While the body of said mad doctor was found charred and missing a few parts due to Anko's bomb, the data he collected after the transformation was complete having miraculously survived the explosion.

Opening the folder up, Sarutobi began to read…

_Subject #1_

_Age: 4 years old_

_Sex: Male_

_Status: Container of the Ky__ū__bi no Y__ō__ko and first subject in Project Sea Power._

_Subject #2_

_Age: 4 years old_

_Sex: Female_

_Status: second subject in Project Sea Power_

_Day 1 after transformation process_

_After removing the subjects from the tank and bringing him to the recovery room, the Ky__ū__bi took control of subject #1 body. After a brief confrontation the Ky__ū__bi transformed both subject #1 and #2 into a more perfected form of the intended results for Project Sea Power. Soon after the change was complete subject #1 once again fell unconscious. DNA was removed from both subjects for study and the seal for the Ky__ū__bi was examined on subject #1. It appears that it was weakened from the transformation process but is slowly repairing itself. At the rate it is repairing it will be fully repaired in four days._

_Day 2_

_The DNA results on both the subjects have been completed. Despite their changes, both of them remain human with the change taking up the gene segments that are reserved for blood limits. It appears that as a bloodline it is hyper dominant. This means that any children that the subject have with normal people will have the same transformation. This will override all other blood limits the other parent might have in favor of the transformation. It also appears that it will not loose it's potency by breeding out of the "family" so to speak that is a problem with other bloodlines. This means that in two to three generations times we could amass an army of solders with the transformation just by using Subject #1 and #2 as breeding stock._

_The one question that still bugs me is why? Why did the Ky__ū__bi also transform Subject #2 as well as Subject #1? By talking with the Ky__ū__bi today, who still can control subject #1's unconscious body, he said that he would not have a weak host. When I asked him about subject #2 he just laughed and said that he experiences everything that subject #1 experiences. This leads me to wonder if the Ky__ū__bi transformed subject #2 so subject #1 could have a mate, or at least someone he could have sex with, so the Ky__ū__bi could feel the pleasure. I'm sure this is one of the reasons but I also believe the Ky__ū__bi just likes to mess around with and destroy people's lives._

_Day 3_

_The results of the DNA test done yesterday about the potency and nature of the bloodline were confirmed today with more tests. The blood limit has officially been named the Mer blood limit. However after studying it, it appears that we won't be able to artificially give people this blood limit. My suggestion is that we use these two as breading stock at the earliest possible time, age 14 if my data about their physical growth is correct._

_Day 4_

_The seal for the Ky__ū__bi has finished its repairs and both subjects remain unconscious, nothing new to report. By looking back on the conversations with the Ky__ū__bi, I have been able to surmise that the Ky__ū__bi transformed subjects #1 and #2 to a) increase their power so the Ky__ū__bi would have a strong vessel, b) to experience pleasure, both during the transformation and latter, and c) to screw around and mess up not only their lives but the experiment itself. _

_Day 5_

_Both subjects have awoken, but there is a complication. They appear to have reverted back to a more primitive animal mindset due to the stress placed upon them. They can communicate with each other through their own language (fish speak is what I like to call it). They also appear to know how to instinctual hunt for fish and swim. While this is a set back, it doesn't seem like these results are permanent. Given some time, their minds should reset themselves. _

_Day 6_

_A physical was done on the subjects. Their scales prove to be ten times harder than human skin, but because they are so small, their skin appears to be soft and they can feel it when the scales are touched. Their eyes operate both in and out of water perfectly with no problems and they are at least three times as strong as a normal human. They can handle Arctic temperatures as well as near boiling point temperature water, all while they are naked and in a span of a couple of minutes from each other with no negative effects upon their bodies. However, they don't like electricity and are slightly more susceptible to it than normal human._

_Day 7_

_The subjects seem to be able to handle pain at varying levels extremely well, but this might just be the effect for their current mindset. Both subject #1 and #2 seam to be forming a close bond with each other and I found them sleeping next to each other in their tank this morning. _

Reading this information over again, Sarutobi sighed; he was getting way to old for this shit.

A knocking on the door awoke him from his thoughts and he said "Enter."

Coming into the room was an ANBU agent wearing a dog mask with gravity defying silver hair. Walking up to the desk the nin said, "Hokage-sama, the council is in session to decide the fate of Anko-san and the children. You are needed there."

Sighing, Sarutobi said, "Thank you Kakashi, I will be their momentarily."

Bowing slightly Kakashi turned his back on the Hokage and left the room. Sarutobi stood up, fixed his robes and disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Hokage Tower – Council Chambers

Entering the council room Sarutobi looked at all of the assembled council members. There were the clan heads, his two former team mates, Danzō, and elected officials from the town. He wished he could remove the civilians and Danzō from the room, but he didn't have the power to do so any more.

Taking his seat Sarutobi began to talk, "I have called this meeting to inform you of a series of events that have taken place over the last couple of days…" (he goes into a long explanation about how Anko blew up Orochimaru's base, that her story was verified through truth serum, and that she has the curse seal).

"There is also the condition of the two children that where found with her. Both of them were experimented upon by Orochimaru and as a result given a new aquatic blood limit that transformed them into "fish people" for lack of a better word. One of them we only know her name and age, one Mako Isaribi age 4. The other, however, is a citizen of Konoha … Uzumaki Naruto" the Sandiame informs them.

Upon hearing the fact that Naruto was back the entire council went into an uproar. They thought that they were finally rid of the Kyūbi brat once and for all. They were so sure that he was dead or gone that they revoked the thirds law surrounding him and the secret that he was the jinchūriki of the Kyūbi no Yōko . It is now public knowledge and even in the history books that the Kyūbi is sealed inside of him. Of course they failed to mention that there were two previous containers of the Kyūbi, facts that for some reason escaped public knowledge.

Almost immediately some of the counsel members began calling for his execution while the others discussed locking him up or letting him roam free, in another country where he could be killed like Water country. The ruckus got so bad that Sarutobi was forced to quiet them down using his killing intent.

"Now that I have your attention," he said eyeing the counsel members.

"Lets discus what should happen to Anko-san, Isaribi-chan, and Naruto-kun. The curse seal can be blocked off on Anko-san but the question is will she still remain loyal to Konoha or betray us? As for Isaribi-chan and Naruto-kun, they are victims in this case and need time to recover and attempt to live normal lives" the Hokage states.

"Hokage-sama, can you tell us more about this transformation that the children when through?" asked Hiashi Hyūga.

This made Sarutobi mentally cringe. He wanted to avoid telling the council all the details but since they asked, by law he was forced to tell them. Once again he lamented about just how much power he had lost or in some cases given up upon his retaking the position.

'May the future Hokages have mercy on my soul' thought Sarutobi.

Passing out copies of Amachi's report Sarutobi said, "Its better if you read the medical reports done by the man who conducted the experiment in the first place."

Very quickly the council read over the report. When they were done one of the members said, "She has been corrupted by the demon as well. We can't let her live."

This comment was met with approval and disapproval from both sides. Finally having enough of the constant bickering Sarutobi said, "ENOUGH! We will not be executing two children and that is final. However the fate of Anko-san is still in question. We could execute her, put her in jail for the rest of her life, or put her on probation and then reinstate her as an active shinobi. I suggest we go with the third option. We are still low on shinobi thanks to the Kyūbi attack and her power can be useful. From what information we were able to retrieve, she is at least high chūnin level in strength and knowledge if not more."

"I agree with Hokage-sama on this," said one council member.

"We need all the ninja we can get and the two children can be used to start a new clan. Think how useful a clan that could operate underwater would be to the village" Sarutobi interjects.

The other council members, even those who hated Naruto, couldn't argue with this logic and agreed to what the Hokage proposed.

"And with that, this meeting is over" said Sarutobi as he stood up and left the room.

Konoha General – Anko's room.

Back in the hospital Anko had just fallen back to sleep and the ANBU member was sitting in a chair when the door to the room opened. In walked/crawled Naruto and Isaribi still in their hospital gowns. The ANBU member noticed them but decided to do nothing.

He knew who they were and he also knew that they came in with Anko. But even if he knew that he wasn't going to let his guard down. Those kids bit and scratched a lot as two ANBU members found out the hard way when they retrieved them from the surf.

He watched as Isaribi made her way to Anko, curled up on her chest, and fell asleep. This scene would have made him laugh if he didn't see Naruto coming towards him. He wasn't afraid of Naruto because of the Kyūbi, but he wasn't in the mood to get bitten by him either. But what Naruto did do surprised him to no end.

Naruto walked/crawled right up to him curled up in his lap, where he promptly fell asleep. At first the ANBU member was nervous, but that soon passed and as he looked down at the kid he couldn't help but to think how cute he looked.

'Changed or not he's still just a kid' the ANBU reasoned.

After about ten minuets of this the door opened again and in walked the Hokage. Looking at the ANBU member who didn't come to attention when he walked into the room he noticed Naruto curled up in his lap and Isaribi curled up on the seeping Anko's chest.

"My apologies, Hokage-sama," said the ANBU agent.

"They came in here on their own and fell asleep and I didn't want to disturb him by standing up" he continued.

Chuckling the Hokage said, "Its fine Yamato-kun I understand."

Walking over to Anko, Sarutobi gently nudged her awake.

"Anko-san, the council has come to its decision," he said once she was fully awake and aware of the child on her chest.

"You will be placed on a six month probation period and afterwards you will be tested to see what your ninja rank should be. The council has also decided to let Isaribi-chan and Naruto-kun live in freedom in the village" Sarutobi informs her.

"What will happen to them?" asked Anko.

"Well, seeing how they already feel comfortable around you, how about you take care of them. And in return you will only have a month of probation instead of six. Sound fair?" Sarutobi said with a small smile.

"I accept, Hokage-sama" Anko agreed readily.

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><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I hope you all enjoyed it. <strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 5 – confrontation  
><strong>

Things were looking up for the small family. Anko was quickly becoming very attached to her kids. They came with a lot of problems namely they still didn't talk no matter what she tried. The hospital staff she noticed seemed to be becoming increasingly hostile towards her.

At first she thought it was about her relationship with Naruto. She had never really cared for the blond before she saw him in that tank being experimented on by Orochi-teme's lackey, but still she had heard of him and knew how many in Konoha viewed him. She had never taken part in the mobs as she had better things to do with her time, but she never tried to stop them either. She still felt a little guilty about that.

It was time to check out and Anko was ready to go. She had been stuck in that damnable hospital for a week and the hospital staff had become increasingly hostile refusing to have anything to do with Naruto or Isaribi. Those two were the only things keeping her sane really, but the Tiger masked ANBU had also dropped by a lot and occupied the kids when she wanted time alone.

The Tiger masked ANBU was a good guy and she had come to rely on him a bit. For some reason he and Naruto seemed to have grown a quick bond like she had with Isaribi. He was one of only three people that visited them. She learned his name was Yamato as she got tired of calling him Tora. Of course she knew that wasn't his true name either, but she accepted it as it was a big deal just to learn that from a member of ANBU.

Kurenai would stop by from time to time checking in with her. They weren't best friends before, but she would say they were good friends more than acquaintances anyway. Now though Kurenai had become a life line for her and would tell her what was going on around the village. Kurenai would often tell her of the whispers she had heard walking around the village involving her and the kids. Needless to say they weren't good and she was alert to the possible dangers that awaited them when they left the hospital.

After signing some documents the trio headed out the door and into the light. Anko had to cover her eyes a bit, but it didn't seem to bother the kids as they took off running up to a familiar looking figure.

"Hey Tora, what are you doing here?" Anko asked when her vision cleared.

"Hokage-sama sent me. He figured you could use a hand with these two" He said calmly.

It didn't fool Anko though for a minute. The message was clear. The old man was just as worried as she was about their safety. Anko nodded in response, she wouldn't admit but she was grateful for the extra protection.

The foursome walked down the main road although Naruto and Isaribi were still moving on all fours like animals. The occasional clicks and growls they were omitting scared some of the villagers as they watched the old group. The hate in their eyes for the young blond did not go unnoticed by any of them as thanks to their more animalistic state of being the kids picked up on the emotion being broadcasted easily.

Thing were going well as the small group made its way towards Anko's residence when a large group of civilians and shinobi came tearing around the corner.

"Surrender the demon now or face the consequences!" shouted one of the shinobi.

"I suggest you all leave and go home. The Hokage has decided these three will be allowed to reside safely in the village and that no harm is to come to any of them. If you persist you will be detained and sent to Ibiki for questioning where you can be found guilty of insubordination or treason and executed" Yamato says standing in front of Anko and the kids.

"Why are you doing this? Can't you see the danger that monster brings to the village! I don't care what the Hokage says IT must be killed before it destroys us all!" shouted a civilian.

The crowd shouted their approval of his words and stepped closer to the ANBU. Yamato tensed at this action knowing they weren't going to back down with out a significant show of force. It was a good thing he had come prepared. He made a discrete hand signal and two squads of ANBU flanked their captain.

"I ask again that you obey the Hokage and return home. If you do so now this will all be forgotten and we can all avoid anything unpleasant" Yamato says to the crowd.

The mob had actually taken a few steps back at the arrival of the extra ANBU. They weren't foolish they knew taking on the ANBU would result in their death or imprisonment, but they weren't thinking about that. They were only thinking about taking out the demon and they were sure that with their numbers at least one of them would get through and be able to kill the little monster before he got any stronger.

With their resolved strengthened they charged. The resulting clash was initially fierce. The ANBU were under orders not to harm the civilians too much or do grievous bodily harm to anyone that attacked the trio so they didn't use any jutsu or weapons.

The mob took advantage of that as the ninja in the mob took on the ANBU with a few slipping by to take on Anko. This left a large number of civilians to attack Naruto and Isaribi. The civilians soon found they were better off facing the ANBU as Naruto and Isaribi were still going mostly off animal instinct and being cornered and attacked as they were they held no distinction between ninja or civilian nor gave any mercy.

A civilian with a knife stabbed at Naruto, but was surprised when Naruto dodged and then bit him on the wrist taking a chunk of the man's flesh. The man shook Naruto off sending him sprawling onto the ground as he clutched the rapidly bleeding wound. The other civilians hesitated seeing the attack. Whenever they had done this before Naruto's abduction he would run or curl up into a ball and take the abuse. They didn't understand the change the blond under went thanks to Amachi's experiments.

This proved to be a mistake as Naruto was on autopilot and attacked the closest thing to him another member of the mob. Naruto was subconsciously channeling chakra, which enhanced and lengthened his already considerably sharp and long claws and teeth. Using his claws he ripped right into the belly of an aging man whose daughter and grandchild had been killed in the Kyūbi attack by way of falling debris from a collapsing building.

As the man fell over clutching his bleeding stomach the mob snapped out of their shock and charged at the small boy. This was all the proof they needed in their minds that he was a demon and needed to be killed.

Isaribi though wasn't going to let Naruto fight alone and was also channeling chakra to enhance her teeth and nails. She joined Naruto and bit the man holding his belly before coming up along side Naruto bristling at the mob.

Naruto and Isaribi charged viciously slashing, stabbing, and biting anyone that came near them. They had managed to take out five more people before the mob's numbers became a problem and they fled on instinct.

The mob charged after them, but found it hard to keep up. The duo thanks to their enhancements as they changed fully into their Kaima forms were easily able to outrun the entirely civilian mob. They would throw weapons to try slow the children down, but the kids would dodge or if the weapons did hit it seemed to the mob as if they just bounced off their skin.

Unfortunately more people joined the chase as the mob continued to hunt the two transformed kids. This included some shinobi that were starting to gain ground on them.

However, Naruto and Isaribi were not just blindly running around … well Naruto wasn't and Isaribi was simply following him. They were headed for the lake than ran through some of the training grounds namely Training Ground Seven.

As soon as they entered the Training Grounds Naruto and Isaribi ran right for the lake passing by a silver haired teen staring at a large stone. Neither paid the man any notice, but the mob did and stopped to ask if he would join them and get revenge for his late sensei.

They waited for his response for ten minutes before the silver hair man turned and asked, "Did you say something?"

This caused the entire mob to face fault many hitting other members of the mob. When they got up another member asked only to get no response so they continued their chase forgetting the man and leaving him to his staring contest with the large stone.

Turning his head towards the direction they left the cyclopean male said out loud, "I wonder what that was all about" before returning to his staring.

A few minutes later Anko and a contingent of ANBU charged through the grounds not bothering to speak to the man. After all they knew it would be awhile before Kakashi did anything.

**Training Ground 7 : Lake**

Naruto and Isaribi had managed to make it to the lake and dove in not bothering to discard their clothing. They swam away from the shore and moved towards the middle of the lake and waited for the angry mob. They waited keeping only their heads above the water, but nothing happened for what seemed to them a long time. They were about to relax and play in the water when the mob finally came crashing through the trees surrounding the lake.

When the mob finally saw them they started to throw things at them littering the water with their weapons, but missing Naruto and Isaribi completely. The kids would just duck under the wate or move away before they could hit them. Unfortunately there were a few old genin, chūnin, and jōnin with the mob so they used water walking to reach the two four year olds.

When they did Naruto and Isaribi went underwater and the genin thought it would be a smart idea to dive underneath and swim after them not knowing anything about what the kids could do. The result ended with three dead genin. Naruto and Isaribi going off instinct swam around the idiots like sharks picking them off as they clawed and bit them repeatedly. It only took a few minutes for the genin to die due to a combination of drowning and blood loss.

The chūnin and jōnin wisely chose to stay on the surface and fired shuriken down through the water at the kids. It didn't work as Naruto and Isaribi's agility and speed in the water were too great. They then tried to hit them with water jutsu's, but that also failed.

Naruto grew tired of being attacked and swam to the surface like a bullet catching one of the chūnin and dragging them underneath where he and Isaribi tag teamed him and killed the man. The remaining shinobi and civilians were frightened at this point. These were four year olds picking off veteran shinobi even if they were only a few genin and one chūnin it still shouldn't have been possible.

When Naruto surfaced again to get another shinobi he was bombarded with shuriken and kunai forcing him to dive to escape the barrage. He circled the group underneath the water and then swam a few meters away before surfacing and unknowingly replicated a water jutsu the water gun.

The water gun was a simple jutsu really only requiring someone to blast a large amount of water out of their mouth. The jōnin managed to get out of the way and so did most of the chūnin leaving the only female of the group to get blasted back to the shore and into the civilians crowding the shore. Thankfully Naruto wasn't using the actual jutsu and was just spraying water out of his mouth or the damage to the kunoichi would have been lethal. Instead she was just knocked out along with a few of the civilians she hit.

This was the scene Anko and the ANBU ran in on. From there the rest of the mob was rounded up.

**Aftermath**

The civilians were sent to one of five civilian jails in the village while the shinobi were sent to Konoha's Strict Correctional Facility. In the end many of the civilian got away with their crime, because the civilian council argued it would create overcrowding and a loss of income to the village.

The Hokage allowed them to win the argument for several reasons, but the main one was so the council couldn't convict Naruto or Isaribi of murder. Although they were kids, weren't in their right minds due to Amachi's experiments, and were the ones originally attacked they had still murdered several civilians and shinobi. This was something that couldn't be ignored and had to be addressed especially since the old Hokage didn't think this would be the last mob they would have to face.

Thankfully the council saw reason dropping all charges against the kids. Unfortunately he was right about the mobs coming back to finish what they started. The next time though he had more ANBU watching Anko and the Kids determined to not have a repeat of the first incident.

It also helped that after being jailed many of the mob participants recalled Naruto and Isaribi's new look. This just cemented their earlier thoughts that Naruto was indeed a demon and Isaribi a monster since she fought on the demon's side. Anko also wasn't spared as she officially became the Snake Whore.

Also, thanks to Naruto fighting back the civilians had decided to go about abusing him and Isaribi in other ways. They banned them from most shops, openly called them demeaning names when Anko was around, made their children ostracize them, and generally ignored them when Anko wasn't around. Occasionally one or two civilians or ninja would get brave and attack them, but they found the fights growing increasingly one sided in the kids favor.

Jiraiya had to be called in after one incident where a jōnin had attacked Naruto and Naruto had been forced to use some of Kyūbi's chakra. Anko hadn't been with him and the jōnin had successfully managed to keep him from reaching any water. In the end the jōnin had been killed and Naruto grew increasingly wary of everyone for awhile except for Isaribi.

With Anko busy due to her duties as a shinobi Sarutobi had asked Jiraiya if he would stick around and raise his godson. The man had begged off stating he still wasn't over the loss of his prized pupil Minato. This meant that Naruto and Isaribi often were alone and isolated having no one else to interact with.

Sarutobi didn't like the situation one bit and hated how his village was treating a couple of innocent four year olds that had been victimized for, in Naruto's case, much of their short lives. He was beginning to worry about Naruto's loyalty to the village. As it was, much of the work he had done to befriend the boy and gain his loyality and keep him loyal to the village had been some what undone by what Orochimaru did. Add on to that what the villagers were doing and the old man spent many sleepless nights thinking it wouldn't be long before the kid and his friend ran away.

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><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I hope you all enjoyed it. <strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 6 – A year later  
><strong>

_It has been one year since Anko returned to Konoha_ _with Naruto and Isaribi. To say that things were not going well for the kids would be an understatement. Within an hour after the first mob attack three separate mobs had been formed and were subdued in a peaceful manner (as peaceful as ANBU agents can be). Since that first hellish month, things had started to calm down but every once and a while someone would get brave or stupid and stir up trouble again for the kids._

_ Anko was also having a ruff time readjusting to life in the village. She wasn't attacked mainly, because much of the populace including the shinobi feared her abilities but she was shunned like Naruto and Isaribi. Still some of the shinobi were nice to her, but the only ones that showed her any true kindness was her long time friend _Kurenai_, the third Hokage _Sarutobi_, and surprisingly Yamato. _

_After her month long probation Anko was tested by three_ _j__ō__nin__ to see what rank she should be placed at. She was able to take out two of them before the third J__ō__nin took her down. Based on her skill she was given the rank of J__ō__nin with the possibility of joining ANBU in six months after her loyalties had been assured and skills verified through missions. Needless to say the ANBU gained a new member in six months and she was given the snake mask and placed in the same squad as Yamato._

_However, because she was in ANBU and doing missions, Anko was not really there for Naruto and Isaribi like the Hokage had originally planned. She would help them and comfort them when she could, but when she wasn't around they were the only ones the other had. _

_That brings us to the present day. The ch_ū_nin exams are once again being held in Konoha_ _and it is the month between the second exam and the finals._

Kisame was sitting on the surface of one of the lakes near a training ground. All of the members of his genin cell have made it to the third exam and were currently using the time break between the second exam and finals to get some training in. The three chūnin hopefuls were currently working on their chakra control by seeing how long they could jump up and down on the lake surface. Not only did this work on their control but it also built their leg muscles and increased their stamina, a three for one deal in Kisame's book.

A loud splash was heard as on of his student's fell into the lake. This brought a savage laugh out of Kisame as he beheld his student, sitting in a foot of water covered in mud (they're practicing near the shore). "I think that is enough for right now. You three go get some lunch and then come back and we will try again. Only this time you will pump chakra to your legs as you jump to increase the height of your jump," he said, still chuckling.

A chorus of "Yes sensei" could be heard as the three mist shinobi walked off.

"And for heavens sake, if you scare any leafies make sure you have them pee their pants," he yelled at their disappearing form.

Pulling a sealing scroll from his jōnin vest he unfurled in on his lap. With a puff of smoke, a sushi set appeared in Kisame's out stretched hand. Grinning savagely he began to devour his favorite meal, all the while he was still sitting on the surface of the lake.

He was almost done with his meal when he felt the water underneath him move with the presence of two objects underneath him. Glancing down he sees two sleek forms moving through the water, barley visible in the lake. As he's watching the two forms they suddenly veered up and surface their heads right in front of him.

To say that Kisame was shocked by their appearance is an understatement. Here, right before him are two kids no older than five, covered in scales, and breathing underwater with gills. The first thought that coursed Kisame's mind was 'I knew my mother was a whore, but I never thought she got around this much.'

Thus thought caused him to chuckle and break into a smile that would cause a baby to cry. But instead of being frightened Naruto and Isaribi just returned the feral grin with their own sharp teeth.

Seeing this Kisame's smile grew wider and then took two pieces of sushi and tossing it to them said, "Catch!"

Both Naruto and Isaribi opened their mouths and jumped a little up out of the water and caught the sushi in their mouths, which they quickly devoured.

"Thanks sharky-san!" said Naruto as he broke out into a foxy smile.

Chuckling at the nickname Kisame said, "The name's Hoshigaki Kisame…" but he stopped and looked down at his plate. While he was introducing himself he was reaching for another piece of sushi but he realized he just gave the last peaces to the two kids in front of him.

Sighing he got up from his sitting position and went to the shore where his bag was to get more sushi. Pulling out the second plate of sushi he turned to Naruto and Isaribi. "So, my fishy friends, you got any names?"

"Uzumaki Naruto"

"Mako Isaribi"

"Well then my little maelstrom and shark, care to join me for some more?" he said holding out the plate of sushi.

Now Kisame isn't usually this nice with kids and is legendary for his protectiveness over his sushi, but he is curious about the two and their apparent blood limit/ mutation and he figured that the best way to observe them is to play nice.

Quickly the two came out of the water and walked over to Kisame. Naruto was wearing a pair of black shorts and a gray t-shirt with the Uzumaki spiral on the back in orange. Isaribi was wearing a pair of black shorts and a blue t-shirt with embroidery of waves on the right sleeve in white. On their feet they had on black sock like things (think what Envy wears on his feat in Fullmetal Alchemist) that allowed their webbed feet to function properly while offering some protection to the soles of their feet.

Kisame took in their appearance as they came out of the water, noticing that they were completely covered in the green scales (description is in chapter 2). Quickly they sat down in front of him and looked up (he towers over them even when he is sitting). Kisame stared back for a few seconds, observing the two before he placed the plate of sushi on the ground in between the three of them.

"Hey Kisame-san! What are you doing hear? And why does your head band look different from everyone else? Why?" asked Naruto in a cheerfully hyper voice that only a five year old could make as he took a bite out of the piece of sushi in front of him.

"What is this food called? It's really good! Right Naru-kun?" asked Isaribi.

"Right you are Isi-chan! So what is it called? Come on, tell us! Please?" asked Naruto as both he and Isaribi gave Kisame guppy eyes.

"HEY! One question at a time! For starters this amazing food is called sushi. Second, I am a shinobi from Kirigakure, and I am here because of the Chūnin Exams that my genin team is taking part in."

"So does that mean you a jōnin?" asked Isaribi.

"Actually I'm ranked higher than a jōnin! I'm a member of the seven swordsmen of mist!" Kisame said proudly puffing out his chest.

"That's so cool!" shouted Naruto and then asked, "What is a Seven Swordsman?"

"It's not Seven Swordsman kid, it's Seven Swordsmen. As for what we are … we are a group of shinobi trained to be the best of the best that specialize in kenjutsu. However, just being the best doesn't mean you get to be a member of the Seven Swordsmen. You have to be chosen by one of our swords to join" Kisame says.

"Is that your sword?" asked Isaribi pointing towards Kisame's sword covered in its usual wrappings.

"Yes it is, and NO you may not see it or touch it!" Kisame said as he glared at the two children.

"Aw, you're no fun." huffed Naruto. "When we become ninjas we will get cooler swords and not let you see them, ha!"

Raising his eyebrow Kisame said, "You two are going to become Leaf-nins?"

"Yup!" replied Naruto and Isaribi

"We start classes tomorrow at the academy!" said a happy Isaribi.

"Yea, it's going to be so cool to be a ninja and learn all those cool attacks!" shouted an excited Naruto.

"Yes but remember being a ninja isn't all fun and games," said a grinning Kisame, but on the inside he was thinking, 'Dam it! Now Konoha will have underwater specialty ninjas. This could poise a threat. Maybe I should…'

His musings were cut off by the return of his genin team.

"Hey sensei we're back… HOLY SHIT! SINCE WHEN DID YOU HAVE KIDS!"

"Their not mine you fucking assholes. Just for that, laps around the surface of the lake. NOW!" Kisame shouted and seeing the predatory look in his eyes the three genin quickly took off.

Turning back to the kids, Kisame noticed that they were on the ground, laughing at the antics of his team. Naruto was laughing so hard that he had to hold on to the side of his chest while Isaribi's gills were puffed out from laughing.

"Yes, laugh it up brats but just remember…HEY! You ate all of the SUSHI YOU BRATS!" yield Kisame.

This caused Naruto and Isaribi to laugh even more, despite the death glare from the shark man.

Kisame was getting ready to make some more sushi out of the two kids when he heard someone enter the area, coming towards him. Looking to his right he saw that a Konoha ANBU agent wearing a snake mask had just entered the field.

Before he could do anything Naruto called out and waved, "Onee-chan! Over here!"

"There you are Naruto, Isaribi. You two have to get ready for your first day at the academy tomorrow. So get going now and I will see you at home," said Anko in a sing song voice that warned of punishment if she wasn't listened to.

"Okay, fine, we're gone," said Naruto as he stood up and grabbed Isaribi's hand. "See ya around Kisame-san!" shouted Naruto while Isaribi called back to him and shouted "Bye!"

"Sorry if they caused you any trouble Kisame-san," said Anko as she gave him a slight bow.

"It was bearable," said Kisame. "They just surprised me. I didn't know Konoha had a blood limit like that."

"It didn't before they came along. Now if you will excuse me," said Anko in a sad voice as she disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

This left Kisame sitting in the middle of the field thinking about the snake masked ANBU agent's words.

'I think … this calls for a little investigating' he thought.

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><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I know there might be some confusion on Naruto and Isaribi's attitudes towards attending the academy, but remember they are kids and want to learn cool flashy jutsu. They don't care about actually becoming a Leaf shinobi. <strong>

**Anyway next chapter : First Day at the Academy. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time :)  
><strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto or this story.**

**Chapter 7 – First day**

Naruto and Isaribi got up early to get ready for their first day at the academy. The sun was shining the birds were chirping. Quickly getting dressed in the same clothes they wore the other day they raced to the kitchen to eat some breakfast. Naruto and Isaribi share a room in the small apartment but they have a curtain set up to give them their own private changing areas.

Coming into the Kitchen they saw that Anko was waiting for them, dressed in her ANBU gear but with the mask off. Smiling as the two children raced into the room she asked, "Ready for your first day at the academy?"

"You betcha Anko-neesan!" shouted an excited Naruto.

"Yup!" replied an equally excited Isaribi.

"Good, good. Now since this is such a special day, I made pancakes for breakfast! So eat up before they get cold" said Anko, smiling at the children's reactions.

Upon hearing the word 'pancakes' both Naruto and Isaribi were at the small table in a flash and began inhaling the pancakes at an alarming rate.

"Hey! Hey! Slow down. They are not going to run away on you!" said Anko as she ate her pancakes at a more reasonable pace.

"Bot be bot want bo be late! (But we don't want to be late)" said Naruto, his mouth full of food.

"Naruto" said Anko, looking at him strait in the eye. "What have I said about talking with food in your mouth?"

"Um, add liquid to it?" said Naruto with a grin on his face his mouth now free of food.

"No, swallow your food, then talk" said Anko in an exasperated voice.

"Anko-neesan we just want to get going to the academy as soon as possible! It going to be so much fun!" said an excited Isaribi, trying to alleviate the situation.

"Fine, remember I will be there to pick you up today after class. I have to report in soon so I can't drop you off, sorry" said Anko, glancing at the clock on the wall.

"It's ok, Anko-neesan. We can get to the academy by ourselves" said Isaribi.

"Yea! Don't worry about it" said Naruto as he reached for another pancake.

"Ok, be careful and have fun," said Anko as she got up from the table and cleaned off her dish.

After putting her snake mask on, Anko said goodbye to the children one last time before she left to head towards the ANBU headquarters.

After Anko left, Naruto and Isaribi quickly finished up their meals and got ready to leave. Leaving the house, Naruto and Isaribi put on dark green Akatsuki-like cloaks and put the hoods up over their heads. Leaving their apartment they locked the door behind them and quickly made their way to the academy.

Making their way through the town they avoided the stares, the sneers, and the occasional rock that the villagers would shoot at them as they passed. Reaching the academy they arrived with a few minutes to spare before class started.

Standing outside of the academy Naruto and Isaribi took a look at the crowd at the entrance. There were many parents there wishing their children well seeing them off for the first day of class.

Cautiously Naruto and Isaribi tried to slip into the academy unnoticed, but they were soon spotted. Immediately whispers started to circulate amongst the parents.

"What are the demon and the monster doing here?"

"How can they let them join the academy?"

"I heard they're being raised by the snake bitch."

"They're bad news. I just hope my kids stay away from them."

Entering their classroom the students were not much better than their parents. They began whispering to one another about how their parents told them to stay away from them and that they were bad news.

It didn't help that Naruto and Isaribi were also the youngest members of the class. Normally a student enters the academy at the age of six, but because of the fact that they needed to learn how to defend themselves and because Konoha wanted underwater shinobi as soon as possible, the Hokage allowed Naruto and Isaribi to enter the academy one year early.

But this decision only served to ostracize the two even further from their classmates. Now they had to contend not only with their looks and reputation but there was also the age gape to contend with when they tried to mingle with their classmates.

Quickly making their way to the back row, the two were half way up when one boy stuck out his foot and tripped Isaribi, causing her to fall on her face.

Acting instinctively, Naruto jumped on the boy and slugged him across the face, sending him sprawling on the floor and loosening some of his teeth. But during his rush to defend Isaribi, the hood on Naruto's clock fell down, revealing his green scaly skin and pointed ears.

The entire room gasped and moved away from the two when they saw him. They had heard from their parents that these two were monsters, but they never expected them to look like actual monsters.

Quickly Naruto brought his hood back over his face, but the damage was done. Letting out a disappointed sigh he helped Isaribi up off the floor and the two of them made their way to the back row.

Soon their chūnin teacher entered the room and began to take role call. When he got to Naruto's name you could see the hate in his eyes and when he got to Isaribi's name, there was disgusted in his eyes.

Yes, it was looking to be a fun time at the academy.

**Outside the Academy**

Kisame couldn't believe his luck.

'Are these leaf pansies idiots or something. Why would they allow kids with their potential to be harassed like this? These kids could lead them to dominate the seas the way Kiri has for decades' he thought.

Kisame continued to watch as his students wouldn't need him for awhile. As the day wore on and even the instructors seemed to hate the kids Kisame couldn't stop shaking his head. He also recognized something else he was feeling coming from Naruto. It was something he had recognized from his time spent around Yagura.

'So the boy is the nine tails jinchūriki, now I understand why these people hate him so much. Still, the way they treat the boy it's a wonder he hasn't already left. I need to contact Mei and tell her about this' Kisame thought before leaving.

**A week later**

Naruto and Isaribi were coming from yet another frustrating day at the Academy. The glares and nasty comments from nearly everyone was wearing the kids down.

"Why do they hate us so much Naru-kun?" Isaribi asked as they walked down the road to where they lived.

"Cause we are different … I don't know" Naruto says with a shrug.

"Will it always be like this for us?" she asked.

Naruto wished he could answer her question, but he didn't know that either. He was five for kami's sake. He didn't know much, but he did know that five year olds shouldn't have to deal with this crap.

"Hey Ribi-chan" Naruto says getting her attention "you want to go to the lake and see if Kisame is still there?" he asked.

She nodded so instead of going home they headed to the training grounds. They went to training ground seven, but he wasn't there. They tried a few more training grounds they knew had lakes in them, but found no one. In the end they found a nice lake and decided to go for a swim and play around.

As they were playing Kisame was watching from a distance unnoticed by the kids. He had spent the better part of the week trailing them finding out what he could about them. Imagine his shock when he realized just who Naruto's parents were. It wasn't that hard to figure out after he remembered who the last Uzumaki affiliated with Konoha was.

'I can't believe how they treat Kushina's boy. If she were alive there would be a trail of blood from the north gate all the way to the south and back' Kisame thought.

Kisame hadn't really met the supposed last Uzumaki, but he had fought against her once. The ass kicking he received was something he would never forget. Of course he was only a chūnin then and was a little full of himself. He hadn't lost a battle before fighting her.

The last piece of the puzzle came when he looked at a picture of the Yondiame Hokage and then one he had snapped of the boy to send to the Mizukage. His hair may no longer be blond, but those eyes while slitted were unmistakable. He had fought against the Fourth and Kushina in the Third Shinobi World War. Those eyes of his were not something he would forget and Naruto possessed those eyes even if they were slightly different now.

The fact that he remembered the Uzumaki and Namikaze together also helped. He figured they had gotten together at some point before their death and she became pregnant. He didn't care if they were married or not, because it would be stupid to deny the boys lineage simply over a piece of paper. It didn't matter if they were officially husband and wife or not, because Naruto was definitely theirs and if his parents were anything to go by he would become incredibly strong … in the right hands.

While he had shadowed the kids he also sent his students to gather information when they weren't training. Kisame almost laughed at how ridiculously easy it was for the three chūnin to be to find out what should be highly classified information. It turns out Orochimaru had a hand in their change using them in one of his sick little experiments.

The fact that the Kyūbi had interfered with whatever the snake had planned made him laugh. What he learned about this new bloodline made him grin.

'To think these idiots could have such a powerful clan grow in their village and yet show such contempt for their founders. Well, if Konoha doesn't want him and the girl I am sure Kiri has a home for them' thought Kisame.

Kisame decided that he should talk to them so he walked up the edge of the lake and waited for them to notice him. He wasn't disappointed when a few minutes later they came racing up to the shore to greet him, but stayed in the water.

"Kisame!" shouted Naruto.

"Where you been? We looked for you every where" Isaribi says waving her arms in wide arcing motions to emphasize the every where.

"Got any more of that sushi stuff?" Naruto asked hungrily.

Isaribi rapidly nodded her head also wanting more sushi. They hadn't been able to get any from the shops in town as they were kicked out before they could even order. They had asked Anko, but she was busy with missions and training so she couldn't help them. Anko did promise to treat them after the Exams were over and things calmed down a bit.

"Get your own sushi" Kisame says angrily with a glare as he remembered how they ate all his sushi last time.

"We … tried to" Naruto says sadly.

"But the mean people wouldn't let us have any" Isaribi finished.

"You probably asked for a handout and they figured you wouldn't pay" Kisame says with an uncaring look.

"Nuh uh … we was going to pay. I have monies now if you'll give us some" Naruto says holding out a couple hundred ryo.

Both he and Isaribi gave Kisame the guppy eyes pleading for him to share. There were a number of foods they liked and some they loved, but so far nothing had compared to the sushi Kisame gave them. Kisame had to stop the laugh that threatened to come out as things were going the way he wanted.

"Put your money away brat. I'll share some with you" Kisame says.

He walks a little ways away from the shore and sits down as he unseals three plates of sushi for them all to eat. Although this time he would make sure to keep a closer eye on the brats.

"Woohoo Sushi!" both kids celebrated.

They were both out of the water and sitting in front of Kisame with half a piece of sushi in their mouths before he could even blink. For the next five minutes the only noises made in that particular training ground was that of three noisy and satisfied eaters. When they were done Kisame decided it was time to begin his little plan at getting the kids to leave with him. He was just having trouble beginning, but thankfully for him Naruto kicked things off.

Looking down at all three plates and still not feeling full Naruto had to ask, "Kisame-san you got any more sushi?"

"I've treated you twice now to my sushi kid. You are going to have to buy your own from now on" Kisame says.

"B-but they won't let us buy any" Naruto whines.

"Why not?" Kisame asks.

The kids shrugged before Naruto answer, "Because we're … different …"

"Sounds like how my village used to be" Kisame says as if he was remembering something bad.

His response to Naruto's answer got the desired result as both kids focused on him.

"What do you mean Kisame-san?" Isaribi asked.

"In my village people like me who were different from the normal people were hated. It was mostly clans with bloodlines, but others were hated as well for being different. The normal people came to believe those that were different than them were the cause of all the wars and bloodshed so they didn't want anything to do with them. This caused a war to start in my village, but fortunately the new Mizukage came and changed everything" Kisame says with a … somewhat warm smile, it still looked freaky.

"How did they change things?" Isaribi asked.

"The new Mizukage is a woman that came from a clan of duel element bloodline users. Hers is the rarest form of their bloodline because she can use two advanced nature kekkei genkai …" Kisame says before being interrupted by Naruto.

"Ad-vanced nature whats-it?" Naruto asked.

"Advanced Nature kekkei genkai kid. Basically she can use elements stronger than the base elements" Kisame says hoping that was plain enough for the kid.

But it wasn't. "Like what?" Naruto asks curiously.

"Like … instead of water she can make mist that melt peoples faces off" Kisame says happily.

Kisame had liked Yagura before the man went bat shit crazy with paranoia, justified or not, but he appreciated Mei's way of dealing with people even more. It helped that she was hot. He also had no problems with taking orders from a woman unlike some shinobi.

"She sounds scary" Isaribi says with Naruto nodding.

"I guess, but she is a good person and is willing to listen to you and hear things from your prospective. Although she has this weird thing about her age and being single … I don't really get it myself" Kisame says like he was thinking about something in the end.

"So how did she change things?" Naruto asked.

"That's a talk for another time brat. Just know that if you were a Kiri citizen that no one would look down on you because of the way you look or your bloodline. You would receive serious training so that you could become strong and protect Kiri … maybe even become the Mizukage yourself one day if you trained real hard" Kisame says with a grin.

" … you really think I could become the Mizukage?" Naruto asked hesitantly.

"Well … you'd have to become the best of the best. It's not like they just let anyone become a Kage you know. But … if you trained real hard and proved yourself to be a good leader … I … guess you could become the Mizukage some day gaki" Kisame says.

Naruto was thinking hard way harder than Isaribi had ever seen him think before. She was growing slightly worried. She didn't like Konoha, but Anko had become like a big sister or mother figure to her and she didn't know if she could leave without Anko.

Naruto was also having the same dilemma. He hated Konoha, but there were certain people he would miss. However, it was his dream to be a great ninja, one of the best, a Kage. He had doubts he would ever be able to do that in Konoha.

"Also, if you came to Kiri you would defiantly be able to eat all the sushi you could afford. No one would treat you any different from anyone else and if you managed to make it through the Academy I'd make you apart of my next genin squad" Kisame says.

Kisame's last statement really got their attention.

"You … would really teach us?" Naruto asked.

Kisame nodded, "Yep, I'd train both of you brats and make you legends. Who knows you might even be good enough after I'm done with you to earn your own sword and become a Seven Swordsmen" Kisame says with a grin.

Both Isaribi and Naruto just stared wide eyed at Kisame.

'Kisame says he'd even train us, not even Anko onee-chan has said she will train us' they both thought.

Kisame could see he had them both on the hook, but decided not to push things and give them time to come to him.

"Look, you don't have to decide anything right now. Take some time and think it over. Here are two tickets to the Chūnin Exam Finals …" Kisame hands them the tickets and watches as they look it over " my team will be in them. I want you to see what Kiri genin can really do and a few things you would learn from me if you become my students" Kisame finishes and gets up to leave.

"Wait, Kisame-san won't we get to see you before then?" Naruto asked.

"Sorry brat, but I have to make sure my team is ready. Remember to think about my offer" Kisame says before shunshining away.

Isaribi turned to look at Naruto as he turned to look at her now that they were alone.

"Na-kun, what are you thinking?" she asked.

"I … don't know. It sounds really cool, but what if we go there and we don't like it?" Naruto says questioningly.

"I don't want to leave Anko onee-chan!" Isarabi shouts as she begins to cry.

Naruto hurried to hug is best and only friend.

"It's okay Isa-chan, we won't see Kisami for a few weeks. Let's play and forget about everything else for now" Naruto says.

"Y-you p-promise?" Isaribi asks still sobbing.

"Sure now let's go! Last one in is a slug!" Naruto shouts before separating from her and running towards the water.

"Hey! Wait for me" She shouted and ran to catch up.

From his position in a tree Kisame could only smirk at a job well done. He could tell Naruto was already on the hook, but the girl would take more convincing.

'No matter, if the boy comes she'll come too. Still, there's no harm in getting a little insurance' he thought before really leaving to meet up with his team.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you everyone who read the new chapter of 'Still Waters'. I know it's been awhile, but I hope this chapter made up for it a little bit. Still using some of Gomjibar22's story, but the next chapter will be all original.<br>**

**Anyway next chapter : Decision Day. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time :)  
><strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Chapter 8  
><strong>

Isaribi and Naruto got up extra early the morning of the Exams. Isaribi still didn't want to leave Anko as she felt strongly connected to the woman. She had been there for them when she could and protected them for the dumber villagers. But she was constantly busy and it grew worse as the Exam Finals drew closer. The kids hadn't seen her at all in the last week even today when they woke up at 5 a.m.. She would make sure breakfast was left for them to warm up, but feelings of abandonment were starting to creep up.

They had gone looking for Yamato, but he was nowhere to be found. In the past he would always just pop up from time to time to check up on them, but he had also been absent for much of the last month.

They had tried the Hokage, but with the Finals looming he was swamped even more than usual. This left them trying to talk to their classmates, but they were rebuffed every time almost ending up in a fight a few times.

This often left them alone as no one they knew had any time for them. As a result aside from playing in water after school and training they had time to think about Kisami's offer. So far Isaribi was against it, but each passing day left Naruto wanting to leave more and more. The dirty looks, hateful words, not being able to buy what he wanted or needed, and the awful loneliness that only Isaribi kept at bay were pushing him more towards desertion every minute.

After finding Anko's note the breakfast she left for them the kids decided to find a lake and play until it was time to go to the arena. They didn't have school and even if they did they would have ditched until they were forced to go. Things hadn't changed at all for them there if anything Naruto was sure they were slightly worse after their latest attempts to make friends.

After heating the meal up and eating quickly they were at their favorite training ground only to find it was already in use and the occupants didn't want them there.

With nothing left to do they decided to head to the Stadium early and get some good seats. When they arrived they weren't surprised to be the first ones there. It was still pretty early at 7 a.m. and the Finals weren't scheduled to start until noon.

When people did start arriving they were avoided like they had the plague. They basically had three rows to themselves as people chose to stand in the aisle instead of beside, behind, or even in front of them.

However, this just meant they had an open view of the field with nothing obstructing them. It got even better when Kisame arrived and unsealed a scroll full of sushi which all three enjoyed much to the ire of those now sitting four rows in any direction of them.

Kisame then introduced them to a new food, it was still sushi but with squid instead of fish. He also had fried squid. Isaribi loved both, but Naruto preferred the fried squid.

Kisame even got them a bag of popcorn from a vendor that probably would not have sold it to them and a giant pretzel. This was so far the best day either kid could remember.

That was until the fighting started. Unfortunately it wasn't as exciting as they thought it would be. Kisame had to explain that these were just genin's and that they wouldn't learn anything really interesting until they at least made Chūnin, as villages wouldn't trust most genin with anything really dangerous.

Still despite what Kisame said all of the genin had at least one flashy technique they put on display. And the team from Kiri was by far the strongest. Naruto and Isaribi were amazed when one of them managed to turn the whole arena floor into a giant pool. They were very tempted to jump in and go for a swim.

Sadly the match ended and the proctor got rid of the water using some kind of scroll and something Kisame called sealing. Naruto thought he would like to learn that as it looked cool and useful.

He was imagining being able to have his very own transportable pool. With this sealing stuff he would never have to stay dry again. Of course he would have to take breaks when in school or on missions that were on dry land. Then again maybe in Mist they had under water classes as well.

He also wanted an underwater house or at least a large body of water near where he lived so he and Isaribi could swim freely whenever they wanted or were able to.

As the kids were watching the fights they were unknowingly spotted by the old Hokage. He was surprised when his ANBU alerted him to their presence in the arena.

It was a pleasant surprise though. He had not seen them in some time. He was about to send for them when some foreign dignitary decided he wanted some attention.

'I can always have them brought to my office later' He thought.

Sarutobi focused on the different dignitaries. This year none of his fellow Kage's had come to represent their village so he didn't have to deal with that, but the Daimyō's and assorted dignitaries from the lesser villages were still a headache to deal with.

There was another person present that had been watching them the whole time, Yamato or Tenzō as he was known on duty was also watching them. He suspicious of why the famously known Monster of the Hidden Mist was hanging around a couple of academy students. Anko did tell him about the kids run in with the Kiri-nin, but he didn't like it one bit.

'Something's wrong here' He thought.

Unfortunately he was assigned to watch over the Fire Daimyō and his family during their stay. He was in the running for a Captain's commission and couldn't afford to abandon his mission to pursue a bad feeling. He would have alerted Anko, but she wouldn't be back from her latest mission for another week.

Sadly there was no one else. He would of course share his suspicions with the Hokage later, but there was no one close to the kids he could talk to. Anko still didn't have many friends in the village and those she did didn't want to get involved with the two kids. He had some friends he could reach out to, but everyone was busy with the Finals being in town even the civilians.

Still there was something he could do. He created a couple of wood clones to discreetly follow the kids and make sure nothing happened to them. After that he focused on his job.

The Finals ended in a surprise. Despite it being a mostly Konoha field in the Finals it was one of Kisame's genin that won. He got to the Finals after defeating one of his teammates in the second round and faced Konoha genin that specialized in tiajutsu in the finals. His other teammate lost in the third round.

The Konoha genin was unlucky as he had a hard fight against the other Kiri genin before the last fight and had several injuries the medics couldn't fix until after the Finals were over. He was efficiently and brutally taken apart in the Finals making Kisame's genin the winner.

To celebrate he took them to a sushi restaurant and even invited Naruto and Isaribi along. Of course they were eager to go. To their joy no one bothered them while they were with the group from Kiri even the dirty looks were gone. People just seemed to avoid or ignore them instead.

They celebrated well into the evening. It wasn't until it turned dark out that the Kiri genin left the table as they were tired and went back to their apartment. This just left Kisame alone with the duo.

With his team gone the two kids realized they were also feeling a bit tired and decided to head home before the drunks and bad people really started coming out. To their joy though Kisame said he would walk them home. The giant Kiri-nin did a good job of scaring anyone off that thought of making trouble for the two academy students and got them home safely, but he asked to come in for a minute just to check and make sure they were okay.

Naruto and Isaribi appreciated the thought and allowed Kisame to follow them to their apartment. Once inside Kisame found he had to crouch a little , because the place was so small.

"Anko-oneechan!" Isaribi shouted.

"We're home!" Naruto finished.

The two kids then searched for the usually loud and exorbitant woman only to find she still hadn't come home. They then went back to their guest.

"I guess she's not home" Isaribi says sadly.

"That's okay brat. I got to get back to my team anyway. We are leaving in the morning" Kisame says.

This shocked both kids. They had really grown attached to the blue giant even if he was a little weird.

"But you just got here!" Naruto responded.

"I've been here a month kid. It's been nice, but I'm ready to get back home. The Lakes and parks are nice, but Konoha has nothing on Kiri especially the quality of the sushi here" Kisame says.

"C-can't you stay another day or two?" Isaribi asked.

"Nope, it's been fun hanging out with you two but it's time for me to head home. I think the Mizukage would have my head if I don't get back soon and it's a long boat ride back to Kiri" Kisame responds.

"Awww … one day wouldn't hurt would it?" Naruto asked.

"Even if I wanted to stay I couldn't. I'm a Kiri-nin and I got to get home. Besides, the Exams are over and your Hokage is kicking all the participating teams and visitors out after tomorrow. We are enemies after all and it wouldn't do if he let us stay any longer. Village security and all that stuff you know" Kisame responds.

Of course they didn't know or understand.

"You could become a Konoha ninja …" Naruto offered lamely.

Even he knew it wasn't that easy.

"Not going to happen kid. I miss the open waters of Kiri and being in a village where people don't look at you funny just because you look a little different" Kisame says.

"Look, I'm going to miss you brats but I don't belong here. I've seen you home safely so I'm going to head out. This will probably be the last I see of you brats so take care of each other and stay safe" Kisame says.

He makes his way back out of the small apartment when Naruto calls out.

"Wait!" Naruto shouts.

"What is it brat?" "It's late and I want to get some sleep before I leave tomorrow" Kisame says.

"Did you mean what you said?" Naruto asks vaguely.

Kisame turned to study the young jinchūriki.

"You'll have to be more specific kid. What did I say and when did I say it?" Kisame asked.

Kisame studied the kid as he seemed to be struggling to find the words.

"Three weeks ago … when we met the second time. Did you mean what you said about training us to be strong?" Naruto asked.

Kisame studied the kid a bit longer. He noticed the girl had come over and was clinging to his arm. She seemed upset by the whole conversation.

"I meant it. You have potential kid. Don't ask me why I say that, but I can see it written all over you. I think with even a half assed teacher you would eventually become as strong as any jōnin out there. With a good or great one … you might even be better than the Fourth Hokage" Kisame says.

Of course what Naruto focused on like most kids was the part about being better than the Fourth.

"I should get going. We're leaving at 7 tomorrow morning in case you want to see us off. If I don't see you … well take care of yourselves" Kisame says.

The Kiri-nin then leaves. He noticed they were being watched, but hoped he hadn't given anything away. He really couldn't tell what the kids would do, but he liked his chances. With a toothy grin he made his way back to his team's apartment.

This left Naruto and Isaribi alone in the cramped little apartment. They were both too tired to do anything except head to bed and lay atop their futons. Of course they couldn't get to sleep so they just stared up at the ceiling their minds racing through a myriad of thoughts.

'I hate this place'

'I like this place'

'I hate everyone except for Ribi-chan'

'I don't like anyone except for Na-kun, Anko-oneesan, and Yamato-san'

'This place is worse than being stuck in that lab'

'This is my home'

'Will she come with me'

'Will he stay … for me'

Neither realized when they had fallen asleep. The rays of the morning sun woke them. Another surprise always awaited them when their minds cleared. They were in bed together.

It wasn't unusual though. Naruto would occasionally wake up either with Isaribi in his bed or he was in hers. It had been happening more and more lately with Anko being gone so much. So it wasn't until he saw what time it was on the cheap alarm clock Anko got them when they started the academy did his body leap into action.

Naruto jumped out of bed frantically running around them.

"I got to get ready" "I got to get ready" He chanted.

"Ughhh … where are my pants … no time for a shower … got to get ready, got to go" Naruto repeats.

All the movement and his volume awoke a groggy Isaribi. She wiped the sleep from her eyes as she focused on a half dressed Naruto comically failing at putting his pants on right.

"Calm down Na-kun, why are you in such a rush?" The girl asked.

"It's 6:45, Kisame said they leave at 7 a.m." Naruto reminds her.

"Huh" was her unfocused answer.

"Kisame is leaving in 15 minutes. We have to get dressed or he's going to leave us behind!" Naruto shouted.

That woke Isaribi up as she remembered her thoughts from last night.

"But we can't go! What about Anko-oneesan!" Isaribi shouted from the bed.

She made no move to get up or get dressed.

'If I can slow him down Kisame-baka will be gone and then Naruto will have to stay' she thought.

"What about her? She's not here is she! She's never here anymore!" Naruto shouts back.

"But Onee-san is just busy … when she gets her promotion she'll …" Isaribi starts.

"She's what?" Naruto interrupts.

"Have more time for us? Helps us with our school work? Teach us ninja techniques?"

"She doesn't have time for us any more. She's more worried about her job than us. It'll only get worse. We'll see even less of her if she gets her promotion

She's not our sister. She's not our family. She is only living with us, because she's being paid to look after us. And that's only because no one else in this hell hole will do it!" Naruto says.

Isaribi didn't know how to respond to that. She knew things were bad and she loved Anko, but she knew about the deal the woman had made with the Hokage. Anko didn't hold much back from them. Still she couldn't believe that.

"So what if she's being paid!"

"Anko still cares for us and is there for us when she can be!" Isaribi shouted back.

"I know that!"

"I know she cares! That doesn't change the fact most of the people in this village only want to use us to take advantage of what the snake man did to us or they want to kill us!

Anko's only one person. She can't help us against an entire village. These people don't really care about us. Every day we have to see how much they don't want us here. How much they hate us. They won't even really teach us how to be ninja and Anko doesn't have the time to do it.

I want to go somewhere where I can be treated just like everyone else. I want to go somewhere that will help me grow strong. I want to go somewhere … somewhere … somewhere I can feel safe" Naruto responds.

Naruto at that point dropped the pants and sat on a corner of the futon. He didn't understand.

'Why does she want to stay here?' He thought.

Isaribi could clearly since his frustration and anger at this point. It would be a lie to say she didn't feel at least some of that, but something inside of her really wanted to stay. She wanted to believe that if they just stuck it out things would get better. That they would find friends and maybe … someday … create a family of their own.

She crawled behind him and pulled him against her chest. She couldn't see it, but there was a visible blush on his face, throat, and chest.

"I-Isa-chan?" Naruto questioned.

"Please Na-kun, don't go. Stay with me. Maybe it's stupid, but I believe things will get better with time" Isaribi pleads.

The way her breath blew against the back of his ear as she softly talked into it did nothing to drop the level of blood rushing to his head. Still, he had to leave. He quickly stood up untangling himself from her as she dropped back onto the bed.

"I can't stay. I won't stay. It's been a year already. We have been here a year and nothing's changed.

We do our best to be nice to them. We do our best to follow their rules. We try so hard to show them that we are good, that we can be just like them.

It shouldn't be this hard. Those eyes, their mean words … they hunt us like animals whenever they can get away with it. And it's never them that get in trouble it's always us.

I know you can't understand this, but I still have memories from before Snaky snatched me. It was just as bad then as it is now, only then I couldn't protect myself at all. Nothing here changes for me.

If … if you want to stay I'll understand. The people will probably treat you better if I'm not around. Maybe you can be happy here, but I'm going" Naruto says.

Isaribi can only watch as he puts his pants on and then heads for the door and puts on his shoes. Before he closes the door he says one word.

"Sorry"

And then he was gone. Isaribi fell back onto the bed and cried. She couldn't believe this was happening.

Meanwhile, Naruto was running through the streets. He was barely dodging and avoiding running into the few people that were in the streets.

"Sorry" Naruto called to a man he nearly hit.

He was so focused on getting to the gate that he didn't even hear the man curse his name and call him a demon.

'I have two minutes. I got to hurry' were his thoughts.

As he was running for the gate Naruto also failed to notice the clone that was currently tracking him from above. Yamato's clones had been watching the apartment the whole night.

Yamato hadn't been able to get in contact with the Hokage yet or leave his assignment, but the clones kept him informed. They also hadn't been able to sneak into the apartment until after Kisame left and the kids were asleep. So as far as he knew everything looked okay when he went to bed late that night.

It was only been a matter of routine that found him awake when the clone quickly transmitted what was going on. Yamato bolted for the Hokage mansion knowing the old man had an early briefing session with the elders on the docket.

He spared no formalities as he hastily made his way to the Hokage ignoring anyone that called to him or tried to stop him. When he burst into the Hokage's office the old man and his two former team mates were shocked by the interruption. Before he could say anything the ANBU that guarded the Hokage acted and quickly restrained their fellow operative.

"Yamato, what's the meaning of this?" Sarutobi questioned.

Yamato struggled to get up, but found he couldn't so he blurted it out instead.

"Naruto is leaving the village!" He shouted uncharacteristically.

"WHAT!?" The old man shouted.

"He's leaving the village, Hokage-sama" Yamato repeats.

The Hokage quickly had his ANBU let the man up and let him go.

"Where is Naruto-kun now Yamato?" the Hokage asked.

"Heading to the village gates Hokage-sama, my clone is following him" Yamato states.

The old Hokage nodded at the information. He then motioned to his ANBU.

"Get a message to the two standing guard at the gate. Tell them to not let anyone pass" Sarutobi orders.

The ANBU nod and hurry to carry out the order. He then sits down on his chair.

"Now then tell me why you believe Naruto-kun is leaving … besides the obvious" Hiruzen says.

"One of my clones snuck into the apartment while the kids were sleeping. When they woke up they started fighting. It seems Isaribi wants to say and was trying to talk Naruto out of leaving, but he wouldn't listen.

And I have to say Hokage-sama that after hearing his arguments I can't blame the boy" Yamato tells him.

Hiruzen nodded at the explanation. He knew this day was coming.

"I see … Yamato you are ordered to gather a team of ANBU and detain one Uzumaki Naruto. If he leaves the village your team is to pursue and capture him and the team from Kiri. If they leave the Land of Fire your team is to halt pursuit and return to the village. Are my orders understood" The Hokage orders.

"Hai, Hokage-sama" Yamato responds.

"Dismissed"

Yamato leaves without further word leaving the Hokage with his two frowning advisers. The both turn towards him.

"What are you doing Hiruzen!" Shouted Koharu.

"As much as I hate to admit it, we need that boy inside the village. He can't be allowed to leave. There should be squads of ANBU making sure he is captured right now!" Homura bellows.

The old Hokage retrieved his favorite pipe, lit some tobacco, and slowly took a few puffs as he stared down his two advisers.

"I am doing what needs to be done" Sarutobi tells them.

Both advisers shared a look before focusing on their former team mate.

"Just what are you up to you old monkey" Koharu says.

Both had calmed after seeing something in the old man's eyes they hadn't seen since the Third Shinobi World War started.

"Naruto-kun, doesn't know what's out there. Right now he thinks the grass is much greener … anywhere but here. He needs to see that isn't the case.

He was going to leave eventually with the way the villagers treat him and the girl. If he leaves now and from what I suspect heads to Kiri then he's much more likely to return on his own" Hiruzen explains.

"What are you getting at you old fool?" Koharu questions.

"The villagers won't allow Naruto to fully become a part of Konoha. Right now they are too full of hate and anger and are blinded to the truth of Naruto's existence.

I truly believe with time they will come to see the truth for what it is. And when he returns they will be better prepared to accept him.

As for Naruto-kun, he himself has a lot of hatred and anger building up inside of him like a volcano. It's better for the village if he explodes elsewhere and cools off.

I also believe Kisame-san has lied to the boy in regards to the state of Kiri. If Naruto-kun heads there he will find things can be much worse than he believes he has it here.

He will return thanks to Kisame's lies and when he does I will inform him off his parents and he will be better prepared to deal with any remaining hostility the villagers still hold towards him" Sarutobi further explains.

The two advisers nod at the plan, but Homaru frowned.

"This isn't something you could have come up with without some prior thought or knowledge old friend" Homaru offers.

The old Hokage took a few more puffs and nodded.

"I've worried Naruto-kun would abandon the village ever since he came back. It's only luck that it just so happens a ninja of the Bloody Mist was the one to tempt him into doing so" Hiruzen responds.

Homaru nods satisfied at the answer, but Koharu couldn't let it rest.

"But what if your wrong about Kiri?" She asked.

"Jiraiya recently evaluated the state of Kiri when they asked to have a team participate in the Exams. I fully expect that Kisame is luring young Naruto away with false promises" Hiruzen states.

Koharu nods knowing no one would want to head to the Bloody Mist if they were told the truth about what was going on and she trusted Jiraiya-kun's report perverted idiot or not.

While this was going on Naruto had arrived at the gate only to find Kisame's team was already down the road and out of the village. He quickly ran after them not even bothering to stop at the gate. If he had arrived just a second later the Hokage's ANBU guard would have stopped him as is they didn't see Naruto pass by as they were informing the two guarding the gate.

When Naruto was finally able to catch up to the Kiri squad the gate was far in the distance.

"Kisame!" Naruto shouted.

The four Kiri-nin slowed down putting their pace at more of a walk, but they didn't stop. Still it was enough as Naruto ran up to the towering blue skinned man.

"Glad to see you could join us kid. What happened? Alarm clock not go off?" Kisame joked.

The three genin with him laughed lightly at the joke. Naruto just folding his arms and pouted.

"Very funny" He responds.

"Alright enough laughs, thanks to the brat here the ANBU will be on us any minute now so we got to run. Think you can keep up kid?" Kisame says.

Naruto nodded even if he wasn't sure.

"Good, then let's move" Kisame orders.

Kisame's squad picks up the pace with Naruto following. So that Naruto could keep up they weren't running at top speed, but just fast enough that they were only a little ahead of the five year old boy. To their surprise though the kid was keeping up pretty well despite traveling at speeds most adult civilians would have trouble following and he didn't seem winded in the least after traveling several miles at this speed.

Later that night several ANBU stared off into the night sky looking over the tranquil dark waters of the sea.

'I've failed' Yamato thought.

He looked out into the direction he was sure the boat carrying Naruto and the team from Kiri left in. He and his team had arrived an hour too late from what the dock worker reported.

Yamato had made a mistake. He was sure he and his team would reach the docks, where he suspected the Kiri team would go, before the last boat of the evening launched. He was also sure that with Naruto with them the Kiri team wouldn't be able to reach the docks in time to take any other boat.

He had forgotten that Naruto was actually very fast for a five year old civilian with little to no training. He also didn't think the Kiri team would have a ship from Kiri waiting on them so they didn't need to charter a boat back home. Then there was the delay in acquiring his team members.

'Someday Naru-kun … someday I'll find you and bring you back. Now I just need to find a way to break this to Anko without her harming the family jewels via her snakes' Yamato cringed a bit as he thought about her reaction.

Two Day's Later

Naruto was walking beside Kisame as his team went on ahead of them. For some reason Kisame had told them to go ahead and that they would take the scenic route.

So far in Naruto's opinion … the scenic route wasn't so scenic. He really couldn't see much past the dirt road they were traveling thanks to the dense fog and Kisame had kept him from checking the surrounding area.

Then there was this feeling … Naruto wasn't sure what it was, but ever since they had boarded the boat and he had time to sit and think the feeling had been with him.

"Something on your mind shrimp?" Kisame asked.

It was a testament to just how distracted Naruto was that he didn't really react to the statement.

"Huh?" He asked.

"I said are you alright?" Kisame repeats.

Naruto nodded at the question, but decided to ask one himself.

"Are we there yet?" Naruto asked.

"Almost" was the response.

Naruto looked up at the blue skinned man and noticed he seemed to be looking for something. This confused Naruto a little.

"Is this him?" He heard from behind him.

Naruto and Kisame turned to see who had spoken at the same time. Naruto was focused on the weird man. He was wearing a black long-sleeved top, dark pants, a belt, black gloves, shoes, and a strange yellow-orange mask with a flame pattern.

What Naruto missed was the look of recognition on Kisame's face and then the dark grin as he nodded at the man.

"I can't believe Konoha let their pet get loose not once, but twice …"

The strange man paused to look more closely at Naruto.

"So this is what the snake did to him … you did make a copy of whatever Konoha has on this strange transformation, didn't you?"

Kisame nodded and walked over to the man while he handed him a thick folder with a bunch of papers inside. The man made a show of opening the folder and going over some of the documents.

Naruto was getting pissed and more confused by the second as he now stared at Kisame. Both men had been ignoring him like he wasn't even there.

"Hey!" Naruto shouted.

The two men continued talking and reading the papers.

"Hey!" Naruto shouted louder.

Yet they kept ignoring him so ignoring the voice in his head telling him to run he spit a glob of water at the strange man. To his surprise the attack went straight through the man like he wasn't even there. It did gain the persons attention though as his one visible eye looked over at him and away from the documents.

"Kisame"

The shark like man didn't have to be told twice as he turned around faster than Naruto could follow unsheathed Samehada and smashed it sideways into Naruto. He left the bandages on it so it didn't suck out his chakra or shave up his clothes or skin, but the force of the swing would have caused blunt force trauma to a normal kid that may kill them. For Naruto it just knocked him back into a tree and stung a bit as his scaled skin protected him from much of the damage.

"Hmph, he's a tough little brat" Kisame says as he sees Naruto stand.

Kisame was about to do some more damage when the man held up his hand.

"Kisame?! Why are you attacking me and who is that man?!" Naruto asked loudly.

"He's also very loud … just like his mother" the masked man adds.

Naruto was shocked by the comment. He forgot all about Kisame's betrayal.

"Who are you?" He asked slowly.

"Well since you asked so nicely … I am Uchiha Madara" the masked man responds.

"Ma-da-ra" Naruto says slowly as he tries to burn the name to memory.

"Uchiha Madara and your Uzumaki Naruto" He continues.

Of course Naruto was shocked even more.

"How do you know that?" Naruto asked.

"I know a lot of things, boy. And I don't feel like telling you. Leave before I forget myself and kill you" Madara says.

"W-what … but I-I can't leave. Kisame was going to be my sensei and make me strong enough to be one of the 7 swordsmen and get a cool sword better than his" Naruto responds.

"HAHAHAHA!" Both men laughed at the boy.

"What's so funny?!" Naruto shouted.

"You … you … *haha* ... you actually thought I would train a brat like you … *haha* …" Kisame responds.

"But … you said …" Naruto starts.

"Said I'd train you. I lied kid. I just needed to get you out of that village. I never thought you'd actually be stupid enough to run away like that" Kisame says.

"But … why?" Naruto asked quietly.

"We belong to an organization that hunts the tailed beasts. Unfortunately they are sealed away inside people that are known as jinchūriki. You are one of those people.

In the future we will hunt each and every jinchūriki down and steal the tailed beast inside of you. For that to happen we need to get you alone, but now you are outside of your village and you can't go back because you ran away.

Even if they were willing to take you back … would you want to go back there" The masked man says.

Naruto just stood there before slumping back against the tree.

'What am I gonna do?'

'Isaribi was right … but I can't go back. I won't go back …'

'What do I do now?' Naruto thought.

"Hey brat, we answered your question now get lost or samehada's going to get an early dinner" Kisame threatens.

As the bandages start to unravel from the sword Naruto looks the man in the eyes. He could tell he meant it. Removing himself from the tree Naruto started walking away not even paying attention to where he was going.

When he was gone Kisame turned to Madara.

"Are you sure we should let him go like this?" Kisame asked.

"Your not going soft on me are you Kisame?" Madara questions.

"No … it's just what if we can't find him when the time comes?" Kisame questioned.

Madara just waved him off.

"Zetsu will keep tabs on him. Now enough about the boy. I need you to wrap up your business with the Mist. I've done all I can do here. What happens now will be left to fate" Madara says.

Kisame nods and watches as the man vanish. He was used to it. He looked in the direction the kid went. He didn't want to admit it, but he had grown a little soft for the two kids while in Konoha.

He sent a clone into the mist. It wouldn't get very far, but it should have enough chakra to get where it needed to go. Covering his sword back up Kisame headed for Kiri. He was glad he was leaving the place soon as he really didn't want to deal with Yagura or his 'team' any longer. Some days it took all he had to stop himself from killing one or both.

**Several Weeks**** later**

"Is that him"

"Green scaly skin ... dark green hair ... dark green stripes on the body ... point ears ... and whiskers ... yep that's him"

"Alright, pick him up"

"What if he wakes up?"

"Your a grown man for Kami sakes. Is a little boy too much for you to handle?"

"No, but ... we don't want to hurt him"

"Fine, give him this"

The man was handed a syringe with a mild knockout drug. He quickly snuck up on the sleeping Naruto and dosed him before he could fully wake up. He did have a little trouble as he had to find a soft area where the scales weren't present quickly. Luckily they were prepared thanks to their informant and he injected him between the toes.

"Alright let's go. They want him delivered by midnight"

The two strangers picked the boy up and made their way deeper into the lands of Kiri. He wouldn't be seen again for several years.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading the 8th chapter of Still Waters my take on Gomjibar22's Foxfish story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter after the long wait. I'll try to make the wait for the 9th chapter shorter.<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or this story idea. **

**Still Waters  
><strong>

**Chapter 9 - Change**

Three months passed slowly for Isaribi since Naruto left. Everything in her life had gone completely insane. The only good thing to happen for her since Naruto left was the villagers had stopped trying to kill her. Instead they mostly took to ignoring her presence as if she didn't exist.

A week after Naruto left she was called to the Hokage's office. It was there she officially learned that Naruto had left not only Konoha, but Fire Country as well.

She asked if anyone was going to go get him, because he was probably in Kiri but the answer left her far from satisfied. From what she could understand there were no plans to get Naruto back. If he came back he would have to come back on his own.

As she walked back to the empty apartment where Anko had still not returned from her mission she noticed the villagers smiles. Seems word had spread about Naruto leaving already. Those smiles only served to make her angry and think she was stupid for not leaving with her best and only friend.

Three days after her meeting with the Hokage, Anko finally returned. Unfortunately it wasn't the happy reunion she expected it to be.

"What do you mean I am leaving?" Isaribi asked.

Anko refused to look at her despite Isaribi pulling on her.

"The Hokage and his senior council in their wisdom have decided that my mission to watch you and Naruto has come to an end with him running away. They are giving you your own apartment where you will live off a stipend to cover your expenses until you graduate the academy" Anko informs her.

"WHAT?! How can they do this?" Isaribi questioned.

"I just lost Naruto and now they are taking you away too …" Isaribi says as she begins to cry.

Anko couldn't stop herself from bending down and hugging the bawling little girl.

"I'm sorry Isaribi … I did all I could to change their minds, but there was nothing I could say or do. They don't want you living with me anymore. They don't find your bloodline interesting enough to warrant my protection anymore and they don't care about my feelings.

I think a few of those teme's got off on telling me that you couldn't live with me anymore" Anko tells the girl.

Isaribi just cried herself to sleep and Anko let the girl rest. The only way Anko got her to go to sleep was by promising she would visit her often at her new place. They didn't get more than a day together before some ANBU came and took her things to her new apartment.

The truth was the village was still very much interested in the Mer bloodline. The problem was with Naruto gone they were doubtful anyone else would want to willingly breed with the girl. They had time though and stranger things were known to happen.

The real problem was Konoha did not employ an active navy. None of the major villages did actually except for Kiri and with the 'Purge' going on Kiri wasn't exactly a threat. Kumo did fancy themselves as having a comparable force to Kiri on the waters, but truth was their forces were little more than several over sized fishing boats with a limited crew.

The project was deemed too costly for the little reward it would bring. Any shipping Konoha needed was done commercially or using merchant ships. Konoha was also quite a distance from the coasts of Fire Country making it a logistical issue as well.

The council nearly decided to scrap the idea all together, but Sarutobi suggested they merely table it for a latter date. He hoped that when Naruto returned he could bring it up again then. Until then Isaribi was on her own.

The apartment they gave Isaribi wasn't that bad. It was a little smaller than the one they shared with Anko and all the furniture was 2nd hand. The place was also a bit of a mess as well and there were spiders and other things all over the place. It was obvious it had been awhile since anyone had lived in it.

She had cried enough though and made the best of the situation. Thankfully with the villagers no longer bothering her she was able to get what she needed easier. She wasn't welcomed in many stores, but she wasn't kicked out or over charged either.

Unfortunately her new apartment was not near any bodies of water and she was banned from any training grounds that contained water. There were still a few options left to her, but if she didn't want to pay to visit a hot springs the only place she got to swim regularly was the bathtub.

Worse was the day she had to go back to the academy she was informed that she was being pushed back. She would be retaking the 1st year course with the appropriate age group.

She was once again at the back of the room near a window, but she didn't look out of it much. She did take notice that most of the clans of Konoha were represented by clan heirs. She had not talked to any of them, not that she felt she could as they mostly seemed to ignore her.

She also noted how much easier things were than the first time around. Naturally having gone through the whole curriculum once was an advantage, but more than that having a different instructor was also a boon to the young girl.

It wasn't that Iruka was some genius teacher that pulled the very best from his students. No far from it actually. If Isaribi thought on it she would definitely put her previous instructors ahead of Iruka in terms of their teaching ability alone.

Iruka was dry, derivative, tended to waste time on useless facts and theory, and Isaribi some times found herself questioning his intelligence. In fact Iruka's sole redeeming quality was that he was big on treating everyone the same way.

So while she did feel he picked on her a bit, the fact he called on her at all was a plus in her book. He also so far had scored her work correctly and even if it was way too textbook he did teach her by the book, like he did everyone else. He also stopped any obvious bullying by her new classmates before it could go to far.

Still it didn't lesson the fact she felt pretty isolated and alone. No one in the class really talked to her and some still bristled at her appearance and would make fun of her when Iruka wasn't present.

Isaribi was walking out the back of the academy. She couldn't take going through the front. With Naruto gone and months having passed people still associated her with him.

She tried to adopt a carefree visage, but she couldn't help that there words ate at her deeply. The most troubling thing was what they referred to her as.

Demon Whore

She remembered once hearing someone call Anko 'Snake Whore' and asking her about it. She could still remember the look on Anko's face that was some weird mash up of murderous and helplessness. And Anko didn't believe in holding back so she knew what those words meant and why they were being said.

That's why she had taken to leaving school out the back way away from the every day crowd of parents and kids. She didn't want to hear those muttered words that hit her just as hard as any fist.

She much preferred taking a fist to the face, at least then she could fight back. She had already learned that trying to win a verbal fight against those that called her names was a loose, loose proposition.

So walking through the back of the school she heard a commotion. It sounded like a group of older kids yelling at something. Curiosity erodes her instinct to just keep walking as she stopped and looked to see what was going on.

What she found made her gasp. It was the Hyūga Heiress, Hinata if she remembered correctly. She hadn't talked to her at all as the girl was really shy and mostly staid to herself. Actually she hadn't heard the girl say more than a few words in class since she had moved back to Year 1.

So it surprised and didn't surprise her to see a group of older kids picking on the cowering girl. Once again Isaribi's instincts told her to leave it be, that someone would come by and stop it. Yet she just couldn't walk away.

"Hey!" She shouted.

The five pre-teen ninjas in training stopped their harassment of the young Hyūga and turned to face her.

"What do you want, fish face" The leader of the group taunts.

"I want you to leave her alone, coward" Isaribi fires back.

Of course when she called him a coward his friends laughed and all thoughts of Hinata were forgotten as he stormed up to Isaribi.

"What did you call me fish freak!" He shouted in her face.

"I called you a coward, dumb ass!" Isaribi shouted back.

"Why you little …" The bully started as he moved to hit Isaribi.

Of course Isaribi had practice fighting against adults from her time with Naruto. Five wannabe punks were nothing to her. She caught his punch easily and quickly delivered a basic front kick to his stomach, which pushed him back into a couple of his friends and caused him to drop to one knee while holding his stomach.

His buddies quickly helped him up as they dragged him away, but not before he threatened her.

"You won't get away with this … you freak. My dad is on the civilian council and will make sure you are punished for this" He threatens.

When they were gone Isaribi walked over to the still cowering girl huddled against the ground.

"You can get up now" Isaribi says to her.

"They're gone now. You can get up" She repeats when the girl doesn't move.

Slowly Hinata lifts her head up and checks her surroundings. They were gone, but in their place was someone even scarier. Everyone had told her to avoid this particular person and that she was a monster. The stories they told of how she and a demon killed little girls like her for fun especially terrified her.

"I..I…I'm … s-s-sorry" She muttered before continuing to cower.

"Huh?" Isaribi mutters confused.

"P-pl-please d-don't eat me" The cowering girl asks.

Isaribi's confusion quickly turned to anger at that remark.

"Urgghh!" Isaribi shouted in frustration.

'She's going to eat me' Thought the girl as she shook even more in fright.

"Hey you, get away from Hyūga-sama!" shouted a man.

Hinata instantly recognized this voice to be Kō, her guardian. He was supposed to have walked her home, but she didn't find him before those bullies cornered her and forced her away from the front of the school.

"Tsch, whatever. Your safe now. AND I DON'T EAT PEOPLE!" Isaribi shouted at the girl before leaving.

"Hinata-sama, are you alright?" Kō said as he helped her up.

"I'm … fine" she responds.

Kō just continued to fuss over her lightly as he brushed some dirt off her clothing.

"What happened here and where were you Hinata-sama?"

"I was waiting at the front gates for you, but you never appeared. Did that monster do anything to you?" He questioned.

Hinata just shook her head timidly as Kō decided she was fine and they headed home. Still, on the way back she couldn't help but think of her savior and wondered why she helped her. She felt really bad about not thanking her and resolved to tell her so the next day.

The next day Isaribi was once again alone at the back of the class waiting for the lessons to start. She was surprised though when she noticed someone standing beside her. She turned to find Hinata looking at the floor and twiddling her fingers as she looked to be struggling with something.

"You want something?" Isaribi asked gruffly.

She was still a little pissed about what happened the day before.

"I … uh … umm … I-I-I …" She stammered out nervously.

Isaribi stared at the girl in frustration .

"I'm not going to eat you. You can say what you want to say and I'm not going to hurt you over it, okay" Isaribi says.

Hinata nodded slowly her shaking gotten under control. Unbeknownst to them they were attracting a lot of attention.

"S-s-umimasen" Hinata barely gets out and bows.

Naturally this action shocked everyone including Isaribi.

"W-why?" Asked Isaribi.

She wasn't used to anyone saying they were sorry to her for anything. Sure no one was out to kill her or anything of that nature anymore, but they still weren't nice to her or acknowledge her existence if they didn't have to.

"F-for not saying thank you y-yesterday when you s-s-saved me" Hinata responds still bowing.

"Oh … umm, that's okay. You don't have to thank me for that. I just don't like when people pick on others. I was glad to do it" Isaribi responds.

Hinata stopping bowing hearing this and straightened up a bit. Anything else that could be said was stopped when Iruka came through the doors and began class. To Isaribi's surprise Hinata sat beside her instead of leaving for her usual seat.

At recess Isaribi went to her usual place sitting against a tree. She didn't have a lunch prepared or anything. She had forgotten to buy a box lunch and she didn't know how to cook yet. It wasn't a big deal as it had happened a few times before and she dealt with it.

Still, she couldn't help but look over at the other kids laughing and eating their lunches. Some of which looked really good. That was when she was surprised again to find Hinata standing in front of her.

"C-can I sit h-here?" She asked a little timidly.

Isaribi just shrugged and moved a little to the side, which Hinata took as an invitation. Hinata sat down with neither saying anything or looking at the other until Hinata opened her lunch kit.

Isaribi literally drooled as she smelt what could only be fish eggs. She had never had those before, but every time she went to the sushi place she would see them. The only problem was they were so darn expensive that she could never afford them.

Hinata of course noticed this and saw the hungry look in the green haired girls eyes not to mention the bit of drool trickling down her chin. She had to stifle a giggle at how cute her savior looked, but then wondered what had caught the other girls attention.

It was easy to figure out though as Isaribi's eyes were locked on the small container of caviar that was placed in her lunch kit probably by one of the cooks. Hinata always made her own lunch, but some times the cooks would slip her treats without her noticing. The problem was Hinata didn't much care for this particular delicacy.

That gave her a wonderful idea seeing as she didn't really want them and she still wanted to think Isaribi for saving her. Hinata picked up the small container and presented it to the green haired girl.

"You sure?" Isaribi asked carefully.

At the girls nod Isaribi quickly took the offered food and devoured it instantly manners forgotten. She couldn't believe how good it tasted even if it was gone after a few gulps. As she licked the container clean of any traces Hinata couldn't help, but giggle at the spectacle.

Isaribi blushed a little feeling somewhat embarrassed. Thankfully her scales covered up most of it, but Hinata could still see it and smiled.

"T-thanks" Isaribi offered.

Hinata just nodded as they settled back into a comfortable silence. After a bit Hinata decided to ask a question.

"What other foods do you like?" She asks Isaribi.

"Why?" Isaribi asked.

Hinata just shrugged not really wanting to answer her as she felt it would be embarrassing to admit why she was asking. Isaribi looked at the smaller girl a bit questioningly before answering.

"Umm … I like crabs, fried calamari, shrimp, sushi is the best, but also … cinnamon buns" Isaribi answers.

"Y-you a-also l-like cinnamon buns?" Hinata questioned in surprise.

Isaribi nodded and Hinata smiled at that. Soon the bell rang and they went back inside where once again Hinata sat beside Isaribi, whom just decided to ignore it. When school let out they went their separate ways, but the next day Hinata was once again sitting beside her and they ate lunch together again.

This is the way things would pass for awhile. They would sit together in class, have lunch together, and on occasion after school or on weekends they would hang out. Still, they had no way of knowing the attention they would gather.

**Two months later**

Hinata and Isaribi were once again sitting under a tree. They had already finished eating and Isaribi said she had something to show Hinata.

"W-what did y-you want to show me?" Hinata asked as she finished putting away her lunch box.

"I know you like to press flowers and I found this the other day outside of the village" Isaribi says as she reached inside her pants pocket.

Hinata wanted to ask why Isaribi left the village, but decided not to and anticipated what it could be Isaribi had hidden. From her pocket Isaribi pulled out a purple flower and handed it to Hinata.

"It's an Orchid. I found it near one of the rivers I was swimming in yesterday. When I saw the pretty lavender color it made me think of your eyes" Isaribi says.

Of course this completely flustered Hinata. Her idol basically said she thought her eyes were pretty. She blushed heavily for a minute before she was able to calm down enough to speak as she handled the flower carefully.

"T-t-th-ank you" She managed to get out.

Isaribi just smiled and waved her off, but before she could respond someone else interrupted.

"Hey, let me see" came from behind them.

Before Isaribi could see who it was that said that Hinata had already had the flower taken from her hands roughly as the now recognized girl stood looking at it.

"Give it back, Yamanaka" Isaribi growled out.

Now most girls when hearing that tone in Isaribi's voice would have backed off immediately. Isaribi's reputation was well known to her classmates and all of them including the clan heir's were warned to stay away. Only Hinata had been brave enough so far to be friendly to her and that baffled everyone.

"Hold on a second" Ino responds off handedly.

Ino examined the flower for a few more seconds before handing it back. She then turned to face Isaribi.

"Where'd you get it?" Ino asks.

"Near a river" Isaribi answers wanting the girl to go away.

Now Isaribi wanted more friends. Hinata had been more of a surprise, but a welcome one. Plus, thanks to her clan Hinata couldn't hang out much and her shyness at times rendered their conversations mute.

Still, she didn't like Ino much if at all. She was a fan girl; one of the worst at that, and all she talked about were boys and hair. Ino also had a really high opinion of herself, which led her to demean others at time none more so than her supposed childhood friends Shikamaru and Chōji.

Isaribi didn't think someone like her would make a good friend or be someone she wanted to be around. She had made it a point actually to not be around Ino or the girls like her as much as possible.

"Duh … I know that. Orchids can be a found in a variety of areas, but this one looks like it was taken from moist soil that you would find near a river. But I haven't seen one this color before in the village so I want to know where you found it" Ino responded with her hands on hips.

"It's none of your business where I found it. Just go back to drooling over the Uchiha and forget you saw it" Isaribi responds sharply.

Ino couldn't understand what the big deal was. All she wanted to know is where she could find the flowers so she could show her parents and maybe add it to their inventory.

That's when it hit her. She never saw Orchids of that color inside the walls of Konoha especially not growing wild and she had been all over the village even some places she wasn't supposed to be. That would only leave …

"You didn't find those in the village did you?" Ino accused.

Isaribi refused to show the princess any emotion aside from anger, but she couldn't stop her eyes from widening. However, Hinata's gasp would have given it away even if Ino didn't notice.

"So I'm right. It's against the rules to leave the village unless you have permission or mission clearance" Ino adds haughtily.

"You going to report me?" Isaribi challenged with clenched fists.

Hinata sat by the sideline anxiously watching the confrontation.

"No, but I will if you don't take me with you next time" Ino threatens.

This threw both Hinata and Isaribi for a loop as they didn't believe what they were hearing.

"W-what did you say?" Isaribi replied back confused.

"I said next time you sneak I want to go with you. You can show me where you found the flowers and I won't tell anyone about you sneaking out of the village" Ino clarifies.

Isaribi was caught and she knew it. Ino was an annoying, obnoxious, stuck up, conceited girly girl with an over inflated opinion of herself but she wouldn't back down if she threatened her like others would.

The worse part was she knew the girl was going to tell regardless. Ino considered herself to be the queen of gossip. The girl didn't know when to keep her mouth shut and worse than that Isaribi got the feeling that she did but chose to blab anyway.

Still, if she didn't take her she would just blab sooner. She really had little choice.

"Fine … but not today. We'll go Sunday at noon. Meet me in front of the glass works shop and bring some clothes that don't stand out so much" Isaribi orders.

"Alright" Ino responds.

After that Ino left the girls alone to enjoy the remaining time before the bell rang.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry Isa-chan" Hinata apologizes.

"You didn't do anything wrong Hina-chan. You've got to stop apologizing for everything. It's not your fault I should have checked to see if anyone was looking" Isaribi responds.

Hinata nods that she understands, but she still didn't like it.

**3 years later**

Isaribi tossed and turned in her sleep her covers already forming a pile on the other side of the room. In her sleep she was experiencing fantastic, terrifying, and chaotic visions of something she couldn't quite understand.

In one vision she was swimming in the clearest bluest water she had ever seen. It felt so real it was like she could even feel the water ripple across her skin as she swam through it.

Then she felt a disturbance in the water. Isaribi didn't know what it was, but she felt her body move at speeds she didn't know were possible, which was saying something because she felt she could swim quite fast. Then her body stopped and moved in a slow circle when kunai and metal objects crashed through the water.

She darted back and forth avoiding the weapons and when the barrage stopped she saw five men approaching from different directions. She didn't even notice that she had gripped several kunai as she sped to meet the men.

She swam under one coming from the left of her and then sliced him from his chin down to the top of his clothes before darting off to slice another on his ankle and then perform a barrel like maneuver to stab him in the back of his head.

She avoided some kind of jutsu that was thrown at from behind and then darted to the side as more kunai were flung at her. Her body then twisted before she exploded moving at high speeds until she slammed into another man, but instead of using kunai she impaled him in the stomach with her claws that had grown out some how and looked razor sharp.

Shoving the man off her hand she avoided another jutsu before swimming straight up. The sight that met her when she breached the surface was horrific. It was the scene of a war zone and she could see all kinds of strange people and jutsu's raging before she was suddenly back underwater and diving even faster at the last remaining man.

Just as he raised a sword to impale her with she woke up in a cold sweat.

'What the hell was that?' Isaribi thought.

Looking down she noticed her covers were no longer on her bed and went to retrieve them and fix her bed. She looked at the clock and saw it was four o'clock in the morning and there was no way she was going back to sleep.

She went into her kitchen and got some juice Hinata had given her when she came over the other day. Pouring herself a glass she sat at the table and tried to analyze what she saw.

These dreams had started happening a few months back. Every time it end up with her being in some type of battle. She didn't know why she was having these dreams. She hadn't told anyone about them not even Anko when she saw her occasionally.

It was really scaring her, but they didn't happen every night or even every week so she could deal with it. There was something familiar about these dreams or visions that she just couldn't shake.

Finishing her drink Isaribi put on some clothes and headed out. She had learned that at this time even a ninja village was dead quite. She would occasionally sneak out and go for a swim in the training grounds if she was up at this time. It was the only time no one would hassle her over it.

Locking her door Isaribi forgot all about the dream and headed to her favorite spot. It was the place she and Naruto used to swim when they lived with Anko. As she left her building she looked up at the night sky and wondered how he was doing not knowing if he was still alive or not.

It would be another three years before she graduated from the academy and soon after find her friend again.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading the ninth chapter of this story. I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time dear reader :)<strong>


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